


For the nights I can't remember

by AkiBurk



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst, Drug Use, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Homesick Hunk (Voltron), Homesick Lance (Voltron), Homesickness, Hunk (Voltron) is so Pure, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Keith (Voltron) is Bad at Feelings, Kinda, Lance (Voltron) is a Mess, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Rating May Change, Slow Build, Socially Awkward Keith (Voltron), Spacedad Shiro, Tags Are Hard, and lance is a dork, but it's not, keith is just very awkward, sharpshooter, this is starting to sound edgy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-29
Updated: 2019-08-03
Packaged: 2020-02-09 12:32:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 28,112
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18638185
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AkiBurk/pseuds/AkiBurk
Summary: Pidge's entire body went stiff with tension for a few seconds before she finally gave in and fell into Shiro's embrace with tears bursting through her eyes.And that's when Lance got really homesick for the first time since the start of their adventure.---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Or: Lance and Keith apparently never sleep because they think too much, so as faith would have it, they sit on a roof and talk in the middle of the night- and they become comfort buddies, isch





	1. I remember that night

**Author's Note:**

> Hey uh, I have a confession to make.  
> It's been like, hundred years since I attended school and like five since I last wrote a story, so I do apologize for structural errors and spellings (I'm just a lost Swede with a broken foot, writing this in the middle of the night without anyone grammar checking so, yea)
> 
> Whatever, I really hope that you'll enjoy this!

It was late, way past midnight. The entire castle of lions was quiet, everyone fast asleep, probably.

Lance broke the silence of his room with a quiet groan as he turned in his bed for probably the 20th time that night. His mind was clear and he was as awake as he could be.

The past week had been hard on Lance's sleeping routines, usually, he had no problems falling asleep, but because of what happened earlier, Lance's thoughts had been going on overdrive.

**1 Week ago**

_"No, not again! Not another dead end!" Pidge exclaimed as she slammed her fist down onto the control panel._

_Everyone in the room looked up and saw the small paladin's shoulders shaking with suppressed rage and sadness, just barely able to keep her tears at bay._

_"Hey" Shiro simply said as he put his hand on Pidge's shoulders._

_Pidge grit her teeth and lowered her head as she did a small move to shake Shiro's hand off._

_"Pidge.. I understand that you miss your family, and believe me when I say that we will do everything in our power to find them. But right now we just need to focus, and start anew as many times as we have to until we find them and bring them back to us. You are not alone in this, we will see this through and support you until the end" Shiro said carefully as he took a step closer without reaching out to the paladin, wanting to give her the space she needed but at the same time remaining close._

_"I..I know space is big and all, but it's just so frustrating that all the leads I get on my brother and father either lead into a dead-end or turns up being some kind of decoy. I'm tired of it, I miss them so much and I just want us all to be together again" Pidge said as she glanced at Shiro, meeting his gaze halfway._

_"Also..I'm scared, what if we never find them? Or worse, what if they are..?" She added and trailed off as there was no need to finish the sentence, as everyone in the room knows what the last unsaid words were._

_At that, Shiro pulled Pidge into a tight embrace._

_Pidge's entire body went stiff with tension for a few seconds before she finally gave in and fell into Shiro's embrace with tears bursting through her eyes._

**_That's when Lance got really homesick for the first time since the start of their adventure._ **

_Lance sat silently in the corner and glanced at the two, unsure if he should do anything to show his support. In the corner of his eye, he could see Hunk trying to suppress his own tears. Lance couldn't help but wonder if he cried for Pidge's sake, or if maybe he too was feeling homesick suddenly? Maybe both? Lance didn't ask._

_Almost in sync, Hunk and Coran rose from their seats. Both had tears streaming from their eyes and Hunk, in particular, looked like a bomb about to explode._

_Next thing Lance knew, he was grabbed by the wrist by Coran, who had Allura in a firm hold in his other hand._

_Lance blinked, completely caught off guard as he hadn't noticed that neither Hunk nor Coran had left their seats and grabbed all of the remaining paladins with their sights firmly set on a group hug._

_On instinct, Lance flailed and grabbed the nearest object, which, in this case, was Keith, who seemed just as shocked as Lance by the actions of their fellow crew members._

_Both boys froze for half a second by Lance's action but quickly snapped out of it as the entire group got forcefully flung onto the floor and ended up in a big pile._  
_Hunk, Coran and Pidge cried loudly and clung onto their fellow crew members in a big, messy group hug._

_Almost an entire minute passed before Shiro once again spoke._

_"Whatever happens out there, we are family in a way. We might not be able to replace your real families, but as long as we look out for each other, none of you will ever be alone"_

_And as if on cue, the loud noise of crying once again filled the room. But now, the tears were accompanied by laughter and smiles._

* * *

 

Lance wandered the quiet corridors of the castle, he didn't really know where he was heading, but he had a feeling in his gut that his body was desperately craving fresh air.

As he neared the stairs, he felt the tears well up in his eyes. He fastened his walking pace more and more until he broke into a sprint up the stairs- and by the time he reached out to open the door to the roof space, he was sobbing loudly and fell down on his knees on the last step of the stairs, his hands desperately grabbing the doorknob as he grit his teeth and cried.

One minute that felt like a lifetime passed until Lance slowly stood up, his legs were shaking and suddenly he felt a bit nauseous.  
Lance used the hem of his shirt to dry the tears of his cheek until he finally reached out and opened the door that led up to the roof.

The chilling night air hit Lance in the face like a sledgehammer, but at the same time, he felt as if all of his past troubles washed off his shoulders.

  
Lance closed his eyes and just inhaled the air deeply, his throat got filled with a raw but cleansing feeling when he did so. He repeated the action a few times before slowly opening his eyes and lowering his head- and suddenly he felt very calm.

  
**_That was until he saw the figure sitting on his knees mere meter's from his own feet, the figure had one hand flat onto the ground, ready to push himself up at any second to defend himself._ **

They locked gazes for a few seconds, just staring at each other frozen in their tracks.

_"Lance?"_   
_"Keith..?"_

They both said at the same time and then continued to stare at each other, no one really getting the situation.

After a few moments of awkward silence, Keith broke his fleeing position and sat down, gaze completely locked on Lance's features.

Lance averted his gaze and put one arm behind his head, scratching his hair a little as he did so, before ever so quickly wiping the remaining tears on his cheek.

"Wow uh... well, this is awkward. What brings you up here in the middle of the night Keith, scared of the monsters under your bed?" Lance said as he let out a small nervous laugh, still not fully meeting Keith's eyes.

Keith raised his eyebrow and eyed Lance up and down with his arms crossed over his chest.

"The ones under my bed are tame, but what about you? Were the ones in your room too scary so you came up here for me to save you?" Keith responded while keeping that serious expression

"What, are you nuts?! As if I'd ever need your help with anything!" Lance exclaimed as he too crossed his arms in defense, throwing a glare at Keith.

"Well, it's hard to tell when you come running through the castle in the middle of the night, crying like a b-" Keith cut himself off before finishing the sentence

"Sorry, I know I crossed the line there, old habits follow, you know?" Keith finished as he looked down on the floor.

"Whatever man, this never happened.. okay?" Lance responded quietly as he turned to leave

Just as he put his hand on the doorknob to open the door, Keith stood up and put his hand on Lance's shoulder.

"Look, I know I may be the last person you want to talk to, especially if your feeling upset over something but... I have ears and I can listen. I may not be able to give you any proper responses, but if you need to vent over something, I'm all ears" Keith said

"You.. wow it's... " Lance felt the tears in the corners of his eyes once more as he turned away once more to wipe them before Keith could see.

Keith slowly softened his grip on Lance's shoulder- but not fully removing his hand just yet.

"You are actually cool Keith, thanks." Lance said as he turned to fully face Keith for the first time that night.

"Remember what Shiro said last week, whether we want it or not, we are stuck together and we need to look after each other" Keith said while looking into Lance's eyes

"Dude, you can be pretty intense with your stares and stuff, it's a bit unsettling" Lance said as he waved with both his hands, his eyes roaming in all directions to escape Keith's stare.

Keith just blinked at that, a bit taken back by the turn of events.

"I..sorry? I guess?" Keith said, unsure of what to do or where he should look, so he settled on his own shoes

"You know what, forget it" Lance said as he took a deep breath

"Truth to be told, what happened with Pidge the other week actually got to me. It really made me miss my own family, I haven't heard of them since I left and I haven't tried to contact them either, so it's on me I guess.. but it's a strange feeling to be so far away from home and not knowing if they are okay or not" Lance said as he finally met Keith's eyes.

"I think I understand you. Even though I don't remember my mom at all, and I do only have a few memories of my father, I still miss them, or the warmth of a family I guess.." Keith said and turned to look up at the stars

"Well.. good thing we have our Voltron family or whatever" was Lance's final awkward response before he too did turn to watch the stars, neither of them speaking another word.

Lance didn't get around to ask Keith about why he was on the roof that night.

* * *

 

 

The following night, Lance went up to the roof once again, only to be met by the sight of Keith already sitting there, his back faced the door from which Lance entered.

Lance considered turning away and walk down the stairs again, but since Keith had already detected his presence (as revealed by his suddenly very tense shoulders) it would just be weird for Lance to walk away like that.

Instead, Lance walked up to Keith and slumped down beside him, lazily bending his knee and putting his arm over it.

"So.. what's keeping you up?" Lance said without looking at Keith

Keith lifted his head to glance at Lance- but remained silent

"Same rules apply to you dude, I'm all ears if you need to spill the beans" Lance said as he casually inspected the nail on his pinky with a bored look on his face

"I... I don't really know? I just feel lost I guess" Keith shrugged

"You mean like, lost in this big world, unsure of your purpose in life? Deep stuff like that?" Lance said with a smug grin

Keith looked like a deer caught in the headlights, he averted his gaze from Lance's, eyes roaming from his left foot to his right and back, chewing on his bottom lip slightly and he stopped breathing for a second, as if he needed every inch of his muscles to think of a response that wouldn't set Lance into a fit of laughter.

A few seconds that felt like an hour passed before Keith let his breath out with a shrug, turning his attention towards Lance.

"Yeah, something like that I guess.. funny right? Keith the emo kid, thinking about philosophical stuff and how much of a small fry I am in this big world" he said, before shifting his attention from Lance towards the sky, as if to isolate himself from what he'd just told his fellow paladin.

Lance just sat there, observing Keith as he spoke. Lance may be dumb per definition compared to the other paladins, but he quickly caught on to two major things about Keith:

**One: He was indeed lost**

**Two: He had some serious anxiety issues**

Lance noticed the way Keith seemingly thought over his replies and the possible reactions to said replies before actually responding, the way he tensed up on a millisecond before and after he'd said anything, his small nervous habits of fidgeting with his hair, biting his lower lip and flickering his gaze everywhere.

It was weird in a way, Lance had always viewed Keith as a hothead- act first think later and confident in his own abilities.

But here he was, looking awkward and insecure over a harmless conversation with Lance.

"Well hotshot lemme' tell you a secret: I think about that shit all the time too. Heck, who wouldn't? After traveling to space you start realize some things, mostly how easily you could get wiped out but also how lucky you are to not have met that end, yet." Lance finally spoke, now turning his full attention to Keith, staring intensely at him

Keith whipped around instantly, locking eyes with Lance. He opened his mouth to reply, but nothing really came out.

"Shit this is so weird" Keith finally said

"Aww don't be like that, I think we're having another bonding moment!" Lance said and grinned slyly at Keith

"Jesus, you're giving me a headache" Keith groaned and put his face in his hands

"I think that tension of yours is the culprit, not me and my sweet voice!" Lance deadpanned

"My- what?! I'm not tense, and what's up with you, where'd you get air from so suddenly?!" Keith shrieked while looking up at Lance

"Dude, you are officially the jumpiest person I've ever come across, except Coran but you are a close second" came Lance's reply

"What- where is your off switch? Ugh, never mind. It's late, I'm leaving" Keith shook his head and quickly stood up

Neither of them knew how it happened, but in a flash, Lance had grabbed Keith's wrist and was now holding it tightly.

They were both frozen in that position, staring at each other but no one said a word.

Eventually, Lance released Keith's wrist and now it was his turn to awkwardly avert his gaze from the other paladin's, embarrassed by his previous action.

"Hah, seems like the lack of sleep is really getting to me, sorry man- didn't mean to act wierd," Lance said while scratching the back of his head

Keith stood frozen on the spot for a few seconds before he relaxed visibly and turned to Lance, giving him a small smile.

"It's alright, thanks for talking with me though" He said while turning his back to Lance with a small wave, before going through the door and exiting the roof, leaving Lance behind.

**Lance sat there for another 5 minutes before leaving, the words "what the actual hell just happened" looping through his mind at least a thousand times.**

  
_/Keith was currently screaming into his pillow_


	2. The night that Lance did not remember

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Okay so, you have two options now- Lance. Either you take a deep breath, calm down and talk to me like a normal person- or I will have to throw you off the ship and pretend that it was an accident. It's your call"
> 
> \-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
> Lance is high on altean tea and goes on a rampage to find out if Keith is sleeping on the roof or not. Will Lance's quest be a success?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so I had a clear vision of how this chapter was gonna turn out when I started to write, it was supposed to be emotional and edgy. But then I started to write drama queen Lance under the influence of altean calming tea instead, because why not.

**Yesterday had been the fifth time that Lance had found Keith sitting on the roof in the middle of night when he couldn't sleep, and he was silently starting to wonder if Keith actually slept up there, or if he just had some kind of 6th sense that told him that Lance was lonely and needed the company.**

 

And speaking of that, the lack of sleep was really getting to Lance and the entire situation seriously had the paladin ripping his hair.

_Coran had noticed Lance's tired demeanor during the day and had taken the boy aside to offer him some calming altean tea._

_Lance had inspected the blue liquid with suspicion in his eyes, not fully trusting Coran or his homebrew._

_"This looks like washer fluid, are you sure that you're not gonna poison me or something?" Lance asked_

_"Nonsense! This is traditional altean calming tea, it helps you to calm down and find your inner peace, it will also improve the quality of your sleep!" Coran exclaimed, clearly offended by Lance's lack of trust_

 

_The words 'improve the quality of your sleep' was all Lance needed to hear, he flashed a huge grin to Coran before emptying the cup in one swift motion, giving him the thumbs up and thanking him- before running off towards his bedroom_

 

\----

Lance paced back and forth on the floor in his room, his eyebrows were furrowed tightly and his expression revealed that he was very confused and in deep thought.

Rather than calming him, Lance was under the impression that the tea had kicked his brain into overdrive and that it would explode at any second now.

His thoughts were at the moment strictly focused on his nightly encounters with Keith on the roof. Why did he- Lance, seek out Keith of all people when he was lonely? Why didn't he go to Hunk? Or Pidge? Heck, even Shiro would be a better option. But here he was, meeting up with Keith in the middle of the nights- and for what? Random conversations about everything and nothing, mostly they ended up bickering in their usual fashion- and sometimes, they hardly said a word to each other! They were just sitting there on the roof and breathed the same air or whatever.

It wasn't as if their interactions on the roof were regular or anything- but it wasn't that far off.

He let out a loud groan and threw himself onto his bed, arms spread wide as he stared up the ceiling.

 

"So like, when did I actually start to tolerate Keith? And does he sleep up on that roof? And why is he so damn tense?!" Lance said out loud to his ceiling.

 

As expected, the ceiling gave no answer. Lance groaned once again and rolled over to lay on his right side, now facing his own reflection on the mirror he'd put up on the wall.

 

With big eyes he looked at his own reflection, noting that the usual bright gleam in his eyes was a bit dulled and that the area under his eyes had started to shift in a slightly darker shade.

 

He quickly stood up and ran over to the mirror, placing both hands on the surface and gently caressed the reflection.

 

"Oh you poor, handsome soul, what did life do to you? You don't deserve to be treated this way- and you should really get your beauty sleep!" Lance whined dramatically as he nudged himself against the mirror

 

"And like, how come that Keith doesn't look tired at all? Why is he always so sharp and focused? And why is his skin so damn fabulous? He's (probably) sleeping on a roof for god's sake!!!" Lance exclaimed, staring at his reflection as if he was expecting a reply

 

But no answer came and there he stood, talking to his own reflection about his rival.

 

"Well, thank you for your support! You are VERY helpful!" Lance snorted before turning away from the mirror, opening his door and stomping out of his room.

 

Somehow, Lance found himself outside Keith's door, still very much worked up and his thoughts not as clear as they should've been in this situation.

 

He glared at the door for a few seconds, before knocking hard three times, taking a step back with his arms crossed and tapping his foot rapidly on the floor while he was waiting.

 

Finally, the door opened- just a spring at first, but upon seeing Lance there- Keith hesitantly revealed himself fully.

 

Keith silently eyed Lance up and down with a confused expression.

 

"...Is there something wrong?" Keith asked carefully

 

"Oh no, everything's totally fine- just thought I'd stop by my pal's room for a little chit chat- YES OFCOURSE SOMETHING IS WRONG KEITH!!!" Lance exclaimed and put his hands up in the air mere centimeters from Keith's face

 

Keith was taken back by Lance's sudden outburst, but his confusion quickly got replaced by annoyance.

 

"Be my guest princess and tell me what's bothering you, surely it must be very important since you come here storming to my room without a warning?" He said and threw a challenging glare at Lance

 

"I don't know where to start! How about, I don't know, why do you sleep on the roof? And how can you be so well-rested even though you don't sleep??? Are you some kind of superhuman or what??? And why are you so tense and jumpy all the time, you WILL get problems with your neck and shoulders if you don't learn how to relax!" Lance was practically yelling at this point and went through his speech in one go, complete out of breath once he was finished

 

Keith just stared at Lance with huge eyes, trying to grasp the surreal situation he was in. Clearly, Lance had finally lost it, he decided as he put both his hands up in defense and let out a sigh.

 

"Okay so, you have two options now- Lance. Either you take a deep breath, calm down and talk to me like a normal person- or I will have to throw you off the ship and pretend that it was an accident. It's your call"

 

 

 

Lances mouth opened and closed like a fish on land, gasping for air, as his mind and body slowly started to get in synch once again after his weird little crusade.

 

"I- .. Jesus shit this is weird but like- I'm just sleep-deprived and confused and it's making me crazy I guess??? I don't know man, I just spent like twenty minutes talking to myself in a mirror and-" Lance ranted until he got harshly cut off by Keith's gloved hand to his mouth

 

"Seriously, if you continue to yell like this we'll have Coran and Hunk believe that somebody is murdering you or something- I get that you need to vent and I told you that I'd listen if you needed it, so.." Keith said and removed his hand from Lance, taking a step to the side while maintaining close eye contact with the ground

 

Lance just stood there, completely dumbfounded as he slowly processed what Keith just had said. Apparently his vocal cords had shut down completely because he was unable to utter a word, so instead, he lifted his right hand to point at himself- then at Keith's door- and back to himself again while throwing Keith a confused stare.

 

Keith groaned loudly at that and opened the door fully and motioned for him to get inside as if to show Lance that he could- indeed, enter Keith's room.

 

Lance's face cracked up in a huge smile as he followed Keith inside, the two paladins sitting down in the opposite corners of Keith's bed.

_Lance quickly started to rant about his upbringing back in Cuba, his favorite sandwiches back when he was a kid, his time at the garrison with Hunk and Pidge, as well as his and Keith's supposed rivalry- wich Keith denied and deadpanned as lies._

_Throughout Lance's storytime, he was moving closer to Keith and was gesturing wildly to get his point across. Keith kept a low profile and occasionally hummed and gave short responses, but ultimately Lance was the one doing the talking._

"And then, Veronica told me that I was stupid and that I would fail, but oh boy did I-" Lance's ranting abruptly stopped as he suddenly felt very sleepy, his head dipping down slightly and his eyelids grew heavy in the flash of a second

"Who would have thought.. hm.. yeah.. hey Lance? Are you okay?" Keith quickly noticed how Lance just seemed to die mid-sentence and turned around, just in time to brace himself when Lance dipped into his shoulder

"Shit, I think Coran's tea really did a number on me.." Lance slurred into Keith's shoulder with half-lidded eyes

"Tea? Dude, what are you talking about?" Keith asked and glanced down at Lance, doing a half-hearted attempt to push him away off his shoulder

"Mm... Needed to sleep so, Coran gave me... washer fluid" Lance said while leaning heavily onto Keith

"Washer what?! Are you even listening to yourself right no-" Keith said as everything suddenly clicked into place

Lance had officially lost it, and he was high on altean mambo juice

Keith groaned loudly and put his face into his hands, why did he always have to deal with stupid shit like this? Why did he have to deal with Lance, who he hardly could stand on the best of terms, now ten times more annoying than usual, invading his personal space and his room, and on top of that, being high on alien drinks.

_God was Keith's life a train wreck right now_

As quickly as Lance had fallen asleep, he shot up fully awake 15 minutes later and continued his story right from where he had left off.

**Keith could handle about another 5 minutes of Lance's intense ranting before he forcefully kicked the other paladin out after he'd referred to Keith's room as "the mullet cave".**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so this was a little detour, but from now on I'm gonna get a little more serious and I shall provide you with fluff and stuff
> 
> Until next time~


	3. Shiro will remember this night, Keith would put it in a frame on his wall if he could

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Do you miss your home, Keith?" Shiro asked
> 
> "Not really" came Keith's instant reply "Why would I? Earth itself isn't anything special- and it's not like I have a family or friends waiting for me back there.."
> 
> \------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> 
> Shiro's spacedad intuition kicks in and he's more than ready to support Keith

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I broke Keith, but spacedad Shiro might be able to fix him, fingers crossed.

_Keith found himself laying on the roof with his arms tucked behind his head as he gazed upon the sky._

_ The castle was currently docked on a planet named Culliarez, a planet mostly consisting of woods, with breathable air and supposedly friendly inhabitants. _

_It was nice for a change, he admitted to himself. Being on a peaceful planet that vaguely reminded him of earth._

_Earth. Home. The words echoed through Keith's mind- something about the words and the ring they had to it didn't quite feel right, and it made him uneasy._ 

* * *

 

 

"Hey" 

Keith winced at the silence being broken and looked up towards the source, finding Shiro standing by the door.

"Hi" came Keith's simple reply as shot himself up to a sitting position and gave Shiro a soft smile, wich the latter returned as he walked up to the younger paladin

"Mind if I sit down?" Shiro asked

"Did you really need to ask?" Keith replied and scooted over as an invitation

Shiro let out a small laugh and sat down with one knee bent with his artificial right arm slumped over it.

"I wouldn't want to be within your range if you were in a bad mood Keith, hence why I felt the need to ask" Shiro said in an obviously sarcastic manner

"You would've noticed" Keith grinned smugly

They both shared a small laugh before looking forward almost in synch, silently watching the sun starting to set.

The planet was beautiful and the sky shifted in purple and orange, casting a nice glow over the treetops as the sun was slowly disappearing behind it.

"What a lovely view" Shiro said with his eyes fixed on the sun

"Yeah, it's really nice to see a proper sunset once in a while. Reminds me a little of home- .." Keith said and suddenly felt a pang of emptiness hit his chest like a brick

Shiro looked at Keith, he had immediately noted the sudden change in the younger paladin and the way he'd almost stopped breathing in an instant.

 

"Do you miss your home, Keith?" Shiro asked

"Not really" came Keith's instant reply "Why would I? Earth itself isn't anything special- and it's not like I have a family or friends waiting for me back there.." 

Keith pulled his knees up to his chest and leaned into them to support his head, his gaze empty and not fixed on anything in particular.

"Then perhaps what you really miss, is something to call home? Something to come home to?" Shiro's words held obvious concern for his fellow paladin 

Keith buried his face in his knees and shrugged.

"Who knows? I mean, I've never experienced it so I wouldn't know." Keith sighed  "I guess I'm never going to understand the others, Lance, Hunk and Pidge all talk about their families with so much emotion and longing and I- I just don't get it.."

"I understand why you feel that way- and I don't blame you at all. But let me tell you one thing: ever since we accepted the duties as the paladins of Voltron and embarked on this adventure, something about you has changed Keith. You just seem to be more at peace, you smile and you show compassion for your comrades. Even though you might not think of it that way, maybe, deep down, you feel that we all share the bond of a family" Shiro smiled fondly at the younger paladin as he spoke 

Keith was silent as he let Shiro's words sink in, he thought them over and over carefully and came to the conclusion that maybe, just maybe, Shiro was absolutely right. 

He finally lifted his head to look at Shiro, his eyes held a warm gleam and the edges of his mouth were pointed upwards in a small but soft smile.

Shiro needed no response from Keith, as his expression was proof enough that he'd gotten the message across.

"Thank you" Keith finally said as he looked up to see the last traces of the sun disappear behind the treetops, the orange light slowly melting with the purple and dark blue colors of the sky.

They sat in comfortable silence for a while before Shiro once again spoke to Keith.

"So, now that you seem to be in a good mood, care to tell me why Lance was running around in the castle screaming about you throwing him out of the- what did he call it?.. "mullet cave"? yesterday? " Shiro asked with a mischievous gleam in his eye

Keith's face dropped like a brick and let out a long groan, once again hanging his head low.

"Where do I even start?? Firstly, he was supposedly high on something Coran gave him when he came up with that nickname, and god forbid that it will ever be used again!" Keith said and facepalmed himself

"What? Why would Lance and Coran come up with such a streak?" Shiro could barely hold his laughter in, very amused by how bothered Keith got by the subject

"It's.. Lance, he's been troubled lately, Coran noticed and tried to help, but it backfired.  I.. I guess I've tried to help too? I'm not sure if I'm doing the right thing or if I could do something else but- .. " Keith said quietly and paused, unsure if he should tell Shiro about Lance's nightly strolls

Shiro just silently watched Keith, waiting for the younger paladin to make up his mind.

_ At least, Keith let out another long sigh- before opening up and telling Shiro everything he knew about Lance's homesickness and current instability. And as he talked about Lance's existential crisis, he just continued on that track and told Shiro everything about his own aswell. _

Keith felt and presumably looked exhausted once he had finished, he'd lost track of time- but it had certainly passed at least one or two hours since the sun had set.

He glanced over at Shiro, who hadn't interrupted him a single time since he started to talk, save for a few hums and nods now and then.

Shiro was smiling fondly at Keith, the look in his eyes showing emotion that Keith quite couldn't place.

"I'm proud of you, Keith" He finally said and put his hand on Keith's shoulder

Keith tensed and looked at Shiro with big eyes.

"Proud? Why? For what?"

"You are starting to think like a leader, and not only that but as a friend as well. You are starting to warm up to and think of everyone here as a family" Shiro said and gave Keith a soft squeeze on the shoulder, before standing up to leave

Keith simply couldn't bring himself to say anything, as the words the other paladin had spoken sunk in- and the words _Leader, friend_ and _family_ seemed cemented in his mind.

"Do yourself a favor and go get some sleep, it's not only Lance that's lacking in that department" was Shiro's final words accompanied by a smug smile before he exited the roof and left Keith alone with his thoughts in the chilling night air

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter more or less wrote itself, I have no idea why or how, but I think I did good. More spacedad Shiro to the people!
> 
> I'm gonna break Lance next chapter, just a heads up. Hopefully, someone will fix him for me.
> 
> Until next time~


	4. The night they both wanted to forget

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance hadn't noticed the homesickness creeping upon him like a predatory animal lurking in the shadows, but god did he feel it when it hit him. As if someone had punched him in the gut, Lance gasped for air as his frequent sobs and cries prevented him from breathing properly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heya'll, finally some wrecked Lance and slight fluff.  
> Also, Keith's 6th sense confirmed. I hope you'll like this chapter~

Lance shot up from his bed with a loud gasp, eyes wild and roaming over every corner of his pitch-black room like a scared animal. His heartbeat rapidly and his breathing was heavy and came out in quick and uneven rasps.

He shut his eyes hard and took a deep breath in an attempt to calm down. What had the dream been about, anyway? He took another deep breath to clear his foggy mind and gather his thoughts. He tried hard to concentrate on what he had dreamt about just a few minutes ago, but his mind was blank. 

He slowly opened his eyes and sighed deeply, pushing his blanket aside and throwing his legs off the edge of his bed. The more he thought about it, he came to the conclusion that it hadn't been a nightmare at least, but it hadn't been a pleasant dream- that's for sure.

He shook his head, there was just no idea wasting energy and thought on trying to remember, it was just a dream after all. But it had left Lance feeling empty, and it bothered him not knowing why.

Lance just sat at the edge of his bed, staring on the wall in front of him. He was just so tired, but he didn't feel like going back to bed either, as the unsettling feeling of loneliness still lurked in his chest. He reached out and grabbed his pillow, pulling it up to his chest and hugging it tightly, biting his lower lip as he felt warm tears starting to fall down on his cheeks.

Lance hadn't noticed the homesickness creeping upon him like a predatory animal lurking in the shadows, but god did he feel it when it hit him. As if someone had punched him in the gut, Lance gasped for air as his frequent sobs and cries prevented him from breathing properly.

He forcefully pushed his face into the pillow he was hugging and screamed from the bottom of heart, he inhaled deeply and screamed at full force again- and again- and again until his throat was sore and just couldn't produce another sound. He was starting to feel dizzy- was he going to faint? His vision was blurry and everything was spinning, Lance came to the conclusion that he was- indeed, about to faint.

Just as he was about to close his eyes and tip over, Lance noticed a shadow entering his line of vision. He opened his eyes but quickly closed them again, the dizziness hitting him with full force.   ' _Who was there? Was it an enemy? Were they under attack?'_ Lance's head was spinning and he just couldn't find the strength to open his eyes again.

He felt somebody grab his shoulders, holding him in place in a soft but steady grip.

_ 'Wierd' Lance thought. He didn't feel threatened, even though he was barely conscious and somebody was in his room- in the middle of the night when everybody was supposed to be asleep. _

He could hear his name being called in the distance, he recognized the voice but couldn't quite place it.  He opened one eye, his vision was too blurry for him to make out who the person standing on its knees before him was.

' _Lance!_ ' the person shook him rather forcefully. _'Look at me!'_ Lance could barely make out the words.

With one last effort, Lance opened both his eyes, staring directly at the person in front of him.

"..Keith?" Lance whispered, his voice not holding any force at all

"Shit- yeah, it's me" Keith said, holding his breath

"Why.. how.. did you know?" Lance managed to squeak out before he started to cough violently

"Don't talk you idiot! I happened to be nearby and it would be impossible for me not to hear you when you were screaming like that!" Keith patted Lance gently on the back to help him through his coughing fit as he spoke, his voice cracking slightly.

Lance just nodded weakly, not fully registering what Keith had just said. He was still very dizzy and his thoughts were in huge disarray, but he felt very calm all of a sudden.

Neither of them said a word, Keith had almost stopped breathing and was just watching Lance, almost as if he was expecting the other paladin to break down once more.

The minutes ticked by, and as Lance's body relaxed and his breathing came out in an even rhythm, Keith too allowed himself to lower his tense shoulders, without releasing his grip on Lance's.

"How are you feeling now?" Keith asked carefully 

"Like shit" Lance admitted " But it would've been way worse if hadn't been here" He added and flashed Keith a soft smile

Keith quickly turned his head away from Lance, his face turning bright red in embarrassment at Lance's words.

"Y-Your welcome..?" He managed to squeak out, hands falling to his sides and still refusing to look at Lance

The silence of the room was awkward, to say the least,  Keith wasn't sure if Lance had fallen asleep on the spot or if he just didn't have anything to say, he wouldn't know since he was still turned away from the other paladin; and he had no intention to face him again that night, or possibly ever for that matter.

"Well.." Keith cleared his throat and rose to his feet, dusting off his knees lightly with his hands. "You seem to be fine now so.. I should leave" he turned on his heels without looking back at Lance.

Keith yelped loudly as he felt something grab the fabric of his shirt, tugging it slightly. He spun around and locked his gaze with Lance's pleading eyes.

"I..I know this is like- super weird, especially coming from me to you.. but this night is weird as it is and I.. I don't.." Lance stuttered as he spoke, his voice still hoarse and ragged

_Keith held his breath, preparing himself mentally for what he knew was about to come._

"Can you.. please stay with me?" Lance finally blurted out

_ Keith was screaming and panicking internally, he wanted nothing more than to bolt from the room and never ever face Lance again. The thought was tempting, however- he knew that Lance needed the support right now, consequences be damned; so instead, he took a deep breath- before facing Lance fully and offering a smile that came out way more awkward than intended. _

"Anything you need" Keith said

....

**_ "But I swear to god, if you are high on altean mumbo jumbo again I'm gonna-!" _ **

**_ "I would never, I promise!!!" _ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can we just talk about Keith for a second? Isn't he like the most dutiful shit you've ever encountered? My awkward little dork, you did good.
> 
> Let's just hope that he will survive this night and not die from embarrassment, TBC folks!


	5. The night that almost killed Lance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Needless to say, Lance was a total mess. A total mess on two legs, currently running through the castle as if his life depended on it.  
> \-------------------------------------------------------  
> "Okay, just listen to me now Lance. Nod for yes, shake for no, I ask the questions, okay?" Hunk said, his expression dead serious
> 
> Lance blinked rapidly a few times, before letting out a sigh and nodding.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is just a big trainwreck, since I broke Lance the last chapter, I figured that I needed Pidge and Hunk to Frankenstein him back to life somehow since Keith only did a weird quick fix and chickened out before Lance woke up, lol

**Lance woke up the following day with a booming headache.**

He turned in his bed and let out a painted groan; he flinched a little as he noticed that his throat was incredibly sore.

 _'That's odd.._ ' he thought to himself and put a hand up to his throat, brushing it lightly.

He then noticed another thing, his pillow was a bit damp.

Lance slowly sat up and looked around the room with a confused expression, why couldn't he remember the previous night?

He scratched his head and thought back; the last thing he remembered was going out on a simple lookout with Hunk since they had landed on a supposedly friendly planet.

He had met Coran when he walked back to his room... _did they talk?_

Coran had just commented on Lance " _not looking so sharp"_ and he had told Lance that " _he knew where to look if he needed altean tea_ " ...

**"But I swear to god, if you are high on altean mumbo jumbo again I'm gonna-!"**

"..............."

**"I would never, I promise!!!"**

_'Wait a second..'_

Lance's eyes opened wide as the fog in his mind started to clear

**"Lance, look at me!"**

_'Hold it..'_

**"...Keith?"**

**"Shit- yeah, it's me"**

_'WHAT-THE-ACTUAL- ...'_

**"Can you... please stay with me?"**

**"...Anything you need"**

"OH MY GOD WHAT THE-???!!!" Lance shrieked and practically jumped out of his bed, nearly tripping himself over

 _'No way- no way- no way, that did NEVER happen!!!'_ Lance frantically thought over and over to himself as he carelessly changed to from his PJ's to his casual clothes

Once dressed, he opened his door and leaped through the corridors, aiming for their common area.

Obviously, Keith hadn't been in Lance's room when he woke up, so he couldn't ask him directly if last night had happened or not. Lance prayed to all gods and higher forces that this was just a messed up dream or whatever; cause if this indeed turned out to be true, then Lance had no choice but to remove himself from existence; maybe he could get half of his body stuck in a wormhole? Surely he would be crushed to death, right?

Needless to say, Lance was a total mess. A total mess on two legs, currently running through the castle as if his life depended on it.

"Keith!!!" Lance's yelled, voice cracking as he forcefully yanked the door to the common area open and stormed in

"Hey Lance" What's up?" Hunk smiled and greeted him from the sofa

"What happened to your voice? And your face?? Never mind, what happened to YOU???" Pidge asked with her eyes fixed on Lance, noticing how wrecked the boy looked

"Where is Keith???" Lance yelled before going into a violent coughing fit, doubling over and holding his knees for support  
In a matter of seconds, Hunk was behind Lance, holding his left shoulder up with one hand and gently patting his back with his right.

"Keith and Coran took red and left a while ago, they were gonna gather stuff.." Pidge reluctantly responded the roused paladin

An image flashed through Lance's mind as he felt Hunk's hand rhythmically working on his back- Keith had done the very same thing to him the night prior.

Lance let out a broken groan and opened his mouth to speak, but before he could form a sentence, Hunk's had effectively shut him up.

"Okay, just listen to me now Lance. Nod for yes, shake for no, I ask the questions, okay?" Hunk said, his expression dead serious

Lance blinked rapidly a few times, before letting out a sigh and nodding.

Hunk removed his hand at that and walked around, now facing Lance straight forward.

He placed his hands on Lance's shoulders and looked him in the eyes.

"Is Keith in danger?" Hunk asked

Lance opened his mouth to speak, but Hunk quickly cast a glare at him- mouthing 'Don't talk'. So instead Lance just shook his head.

"Good, are you hurt?"

Lance shook his head again.

"Does your throat hurt?"

Frantic nod

"Did you two fight?"

Lance hesitantly shook his head.

"Did something happen between you?"

At that, Lance's eyes widened and he started fidgeting with the hem of his shirt, mouth opening and closing rapidly without any sounds coming out.

"Oh boy... Pidge could you give me that?" Hunk sighed and pointed at a striped blanket at the corner of the sofa

"Sure" she said as she grabbed the soft blanket and tossed it to Hunk.

Hunk quickly caught it and wrapped it around Lance's shoulders; before lightly kicking Lance's legs, making him trip and fall into Hunk's arms.

He worked effectively, tucking Lance into the blanket while holding the tall boy bridal style.

Lance was protesting the entire time, but everything that came out from his lips was crackling noises and coughs

"Schhh... don't worry Lance, just shut up and relax, I've got you buddy" Hunk cooed as he finished his work of turning Lance into a warm and safe cocoon.

"Now Pidge, would you be kind enough to help me make tea for Lance? I think his throat might need it" Hunk said sweetly as he smiled at the younger paladin

Pidge looked horrified as she backed away, nodding quickly before sprinting into the kitchen.

**God was Hunk's way of showing consideration terrifying**

 

Pidge came back with the tea a few minutes later, and Hunk reluctantly released Lance from his hold, letting him escape to the corner of the sofa- mug in hand.

Pidge and Hunk sat across from him, staring intently at their blanket-wrapped comrade.

"So, what happened between you and Keith?" Hunk finally asked

Lance flinched and lowered his gaze slightly, taking a deep breath. Did he really have an answer to that?

"I.. I'm not really sure? This night was so weird and I'm still trying to piece it together" Lance quietly replied

"Night? Oh my god, did you finally kiss and make up or something???" Pidge asked and leaned in closer to Lance

Lance's face lit up like a christmas tree at that, and almost spilled his tea in the process.

"Nonono, nothing like that! I swear! I hope... NO!!!"

"YOU HOPE? If this is gonna get weird, I'm out of here" Pidge said and made a gagging noise

"I DIDN'T KISS KEITH!!!" Lance yelled

"Are you sure you didn't have any of Coran's tea???" Pidge asked

"NO! Why does everybody keep bringing that up??? It was an accident!!!" Lance shrieked

"Okay-okay, calm down, both of you. So, you had a rough night and somehow Keith was involved? Why is this a problem?" Hunk carefully asked

The room went silent at that, no reply came from Lance and he seemingly stopped breathing.

"I... I just don't know why he did it... I had this strange dream and.. I think I got a panic attack and started to cry and scream like crazy, and then he.. he was just there.. he was with me through it all and I have no idea how or why or when but.." Lance's breath hitched and he had to fight the tears that were starting to form in the corners of his eyes. Why would he cry, anyway?

"Asking you again buddy, why is Keith a problem?" Hunk asked

"I never said that he was the problem! It's just... I- ..don't know? I'm so confused right now. Why is he being so nice to me?"

"Because you guys 'bonded' ?" Pidge flicked in, putting emphasis on the "bonded" part

"Nu-uh, he hates me for denying it" Lance deadpanned

Pidge shrugged at that, motioning with her hand for Lance to continue

"Well, we've been.. hanging out? If you could call it that? Like, we've been sitting on the roof and I've been ranting and he's been listening?" blurted out

"Off-topic, but okay," Pidge said

Hunk put both his hands up as if to prevent his fellow paladins from speaking, which proved to be successful as both Lance and Pidge went silent and turned their attention to Hunk.

"Okay, so I hate to break it to you Lance, but I think that YOU are the problem and that you're overthinking this. I know you have this one-sided rivalry thing going on, but Keith is a really good guy underneath that whole 'lone wolf' image. I know calling you friends is a huge stretch, but like, we all look out for each other man. I would've done the same for you anytime- I'm sure that we all would. So don't get so worked up about the fact that it was Keith this time" Hunk said matter-of-factly, crossing his arms

Lance found no words to reply with and just nodded slowly, thinking Hunk's words over carefully. It made sense, but at the same time not. After all, they were talking about Keith.

He slowly unwrapped himself from the blanket and stood up.

"Where are you going?" Pidge asked as she followed Lance with her eyes

"I uh, gotta get some fresh air and think things through?." Lance said as he turned to leave. "Also, you two are the best friends a guy could have, thanks a bunch" he finished and grinned at the other two paladins

"Yeah whatever makes your boat float, you owe us one" Pidge said in a bored tone, but quickly followed up with a sinister grin

"Remember, we've always got your back buddy. You can talk to us about anything" Hunk said and threw Lance a big warm smile

Lance gave one final wave before walking out of the room. As soon as the door closed, Hunk let his breath out.

"Oh, hormones" he said out loud

"Ew, yeah. Soo, are we thinking about the same thing?" Pidge asked

"Hell yeah"

**"We need to set them up"**

**"Calzone"**

........................

_"We can throw a pizza night and set them up?"_

_"Ugh, no complaints"_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The wonder duo strikes again! Did I mention that I love Pidge and Hunk so much? My precious dorks.  
> Also, I live for mama Hunk. I had a blast writing the part where Hunk tucked Lance in a blanket.


	6. The itch that almost killed Keith

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith accidentally came into contact with a poisonous bush and now he can't seem to get rid of the itch.  
> (This chapter is basically the author torturing Keith with itches because, why not?)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ughhhh so I'm back to working two jobs atm with my broken foot (yay???), so updates will come way slower now than before, but I'll do my best. Anyhow, I just love Keith in a ponytail so I wanted a stupid reason to write it, also, my plaster itches like crazy so I decided that I could wreck Keith a little to ease my own pain.

_ After Lance had left Pidge and Hunk, he went straight to the roof. _

He had honestly no idea why he knew for a fact that he would be as alone up there as he would have been anywhere else. But that roof had kind of became his safe spot.

He sat down and hugged his knees, lowering his head and sighed.

_ Surely he was overthinking things?  It was just his homesickness and the sleep deprivation that got the better of him, right? _

But the fact still stood, Keith has indeed been a huge support for Lance the past week which was.. odd.

Sure, their relationship had improved a lot since the beginning. Like, they could have normal conversations without getting at each other's throats- and they could joke about stuff without the other getting offended beyond repairing-  most of the time.

_ But like, it's not like they were friends, right? _

They just tolerated each other, that's it.

Lance lifted his head and closed his eyes, inhaling the fresh air deeply. 

It made him feel better, a little more at ease.

A distant rumble made Lance open his eyes and look at the sky, just as the red lion came into view.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As soon as Keith and Coran entered the control room, they were greeted by their fellow crew members.

"How did it go? Did you find what you were looking for?" Allura asked sweetly

"Yes! But we ran into a bit of problem, see- Keith accidentally came into contact with a poisonous bush and now he can't seem to get rid of the itch" Coran informed and threw an apologetic smile at Keith

Everyone turned to stare at the red paladin who stood a few steps behind Coran, furiously scratching his left arm.

Even though the paladin was fully dressed, they could clearly see the angry red markings starting at his fingertips, then continuing up a bit on his neck and left cheek.

As soon as the other's attention got turned on him, he instantly stopped his scratching and hid his hands in his pockets.

"I'm fine, really. It'll be okay as soon as I get to shower the leftover spores off"  Keith said in a bored tone

"Goodness, are you sure that you are all right? Shouldn't you get into a healing pod?" Allura asked, clearly worried

"I'm not injured, so there's no need for that. Thanks for the concern though" Keith deadpanned and turned around to leave, scratching his arm as soon as he had his back turned against the others

 

"We're gonna play games around 6, just so you know!" Pidge shouted after him

Keith's reply was just a low mumble that literally no one in the room could hear, but they had gotten their message across at least.

\-----------------------------------------------

 

Keith had learned his lesson:  Always wear your spacesuit on unknown planets. Even though it's practically as close to earth you can get stat-wise, it's biology is still unknown.

And now he was serving his punishment, laying flat on his bed and scratching the rashes maniacally.

He tried to convince himself that he felt slightly better after he'd showered, but the red markings were still clearly visible, and the itch was slowly but surely driving him insane.

He had promised himself that he wouldn't scratch them once he'd showered, but it took only about 5 minutes before he gave in and changed into a tank top and put his hair in a tie in order to gain better access.

_He mentally cursed himself for being so stupid._

**A soft knock on the door tore Keith from his thoughts.**

He silently stared at the door, not really feeling like opening it.

Almost an entire minute passed without anything happening and for a second, Keith was starting to think that he'd just misheard.

Then he heard another knock, more hesitant than the last.

He sighed deeply and pushed himself up from the bed, making his way towards the door.

When he opened, none other than Lance stood there, awkwardly fidgeting with the hem of his shirt.

Keith was surprised, to say the least, even though he shouldn't be, really. 

"Lance? Are you-" he didn't even get to finish his sentence before Lance cut him off

"I- I really just wanted to say thank you. Really. What you did tonight was just- ugh, you really didn't have to, but I'm like, super grateful and- what am I even saying?" Lance was looking everywhere except for directly at Keith as he spoke. 

Then he suddenly noticed the rashes on Keith's body and froze, eyes going wide.

"Oh my god, what happened to you??? Are you hurt? Can I do anything??? A-" 

Keith finally cut Lance off by putting his hand over the other paladin's mouth; _Was this becoming a thing?_  

"I really appreciate your concern Lance, but I'm fine. As of last night, I just did what anyone would've done in that situation, but I'm glad that I could be of some help"  Keith said and took his hand away once he finished talking.

As soon as Keith removed his hand, Lance opened his mouth to start blubbering again; but Keith put his hand up in a threatening manner- making Lance instantly drop anything he was about to say. 

They just stood there in awkward silence and glanced at each other, no one really knowing what to say or do.

Lance noticed that Keith's fingers were twitching every now and then.

"Does it itch?"

"What?" Keith responded in a forced tone

"Your rashes? You know it's obvious that you've been scratching them like crazy, right?" Lance said matter of factly

"No it's fine-" Just as Keith replied, the itch hit him with full force, making him groan a  little as he scratched his neck lightly.

"Okay I give up, I'm about to crawl out of my skin. This is killing me" He confessed

"Called it. Did you use any lotion or something?" Lance asked

Keith shook his head

"No, just soap when I showered"

Lance looked horrified at that.

"Oh my god, don't you know anything about skincare??? Seriously, Soap and water is literally the worst thing you could use, it dries out your skin like this" Lance shrieked and snapped his fingers  "Also, I know it's hard- but you really shouldn't scratch them!"

"How was I supposed to know that?! And I can guarantee you, it takes all of my willpower not to!" Keith put both his hands up in defense and shot Lance a small glare 

Lance let out a long groan and rubbed his temples, mentally asking himself how on earth Keith could have such amazing skin without having any basic knowledge on the topic. It was a bit fascinating, really.

"If I offer my help, will you take it?" Lance finally asked with a sigh

"I literally feel like jumping off the ship right now so, yes- anything" Keith instantly replied

"Great, let's go then" Lance said and turned around

"Where?" Keith asked 

"Duh, my room? I got all the stuff there so" Lance said and started walking 

Keith just nodded and silently followed Lance, his right arm scratching his left furiously as he walked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah, it was established in season 1 (?) that Lance has a special interest in his own skincare, and I'd like to think that he's way more into that than the show really reveals.
> 
> The next chapter is gonna be gay AF, just sayin'.


	7. What friends do before nightfall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Are you serious about this?" Keith asked, mildly horrified
> 
> "Dead serious" Lance deadpanned
> 
> Keith groaned quietly and fidgeted with the hem of his shirt, avoiding Lance's eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did I just write a weird chapter focusing only on Keith and Lance treating rashes? Yes. Yes, I did. And it feels weird.  
> Anyhow, doctor Lance to the rescue- treating his patient with zero experience in basic skincare.
> 
> (I can relate to Keith here, cause I'm like a caveman when it comes to this. When I tried to figure out what supplies they would use, I thought about what I use on my horse that has major itching problems, combined with how to treat burn wounds soooo...)

_**Shit just got weird, really fast.** _

 

_After they had arrived at their destination, Keith had been practically thrown onto a chair in the middle of the room and then he'd been at Lance's mercy._

 

Lance inspected the rashes intently, taking Keith's hands, touching his fingers lightly and humming knowingly as he did so.

"So, how come that you only have rashes on your left side?" Lance asked without looking up, fully concentrated on the red markings

"I was basically walking sideways into the bush. And I backed off as soon as I came into contact with it, so yeah" Keith replied with a small shrug, slowly sneaking his right hand up to his left arm

Lance hummed a bit in response, quickly slapping away Keith's hand as it got close to the rashes.

"Don't! Just gimme' a second, I'm gonna work some Lancey Lance magic on you and you'll be as good as new" he said and stood up, turning his back to Keith

Keith almost gagged at that.

"Did you just say 'Lancey Lance' ?"

"You bet! And you're gonna hear it again" Lance replied with an evil grin

**Needless to say, Keith was starting to have second thoughts.**

Lance came back a minute later, hands filled with bottles, a gallipot and cotton pads. Keith just stared at him.

"Seriously, where did you even get all of this?" Keith asked

"You just have to pile up when the opportunity is given" Lance answered with a shrug

Keith opened his mouth to ask another question but quickly decided against it. It would just be a waste of energy.

"Okay hotshot, this is how it's going to go down: First, you will have to take your tank top off, second, we're going to apply this burn ointment directly on the rashes" Lance said and poked the gallipot

"After it has sunk in properly, we're gonna finish with aloe vera to calm the skin, and last but not least; it's gonna be up to you to use this cream like 3-4 times a day to keep it from drying up. The key to keep it from itching is basically to keep it soft at all times." He finished, holding up a bottle with some yellow-isch goo in it

"Are you serious about this?" Keith asked, mildly horrified

"Dead serious" Lance deadpanned

Keith groaned quietly and fidgeted with the hem of his shirt, avoiding Lance's eyes.

"What?" Lance finally asked

"This is just so weird" Keith said

"What, taking your shirt off and letting me help you with your itching problems?" Lance raised his eyebrow

"Yeah"

"Oh come on- I know that you are anxious as shit, but we've literally been stuck together in an elevator track in nothing but swim shorts, I think you can handle this" Lance said

"Yes, but we had no choice back then!" Keith shrieked

"Do you have a choice now?" Lance replied

"Yes?.."

"Oh yeah, your only option is to slowly but surely get killed by your itch, great plan man. Now sit still" Lance facepalmed himself and then took a step towards Keith, quickly pulling Keith's tank top off

Keith yelped in surprise at Lance's actions, giving the other paladin a horrified stare.

"Before you say anything- you can mope all you want, but you are going to thank me later. Let's just get this over with. I will fix your shoulder and back and you do the front, okay?" Lance said and held up the burn ointment

Keith silently nodded and dipped his fingers into the can as soon as Lance put it down between them. He hissed quietly as the lotion came into contact with his skin, making it sting slightly, but worked the substance into his rashes nonetheless.

 

None of the two paladins said a word as they treated the rashes.

Keith had to admit that it was oddly satisfying, feeling how his skin turned cold and then faded out in a pleasant heat when treated with the lotion.

Also, he noted that he.. enjoyed? The way Lance was working on his shoulder and back, he used just the right amount of pressure and the way he moved his hand in a rhythmic circular motion was just perfect.

_'Wait what?'_

Keith shook his head a little and blinked

_'where did that come from?'_

"You okay?" Lance asked, stopping what he was doing

"Yeah, just got a little lost in my thoughts. I think this stuff is helping" Keith replied and turned his head slightly to flash a shy smile at Lance before going back to treating the rashes

"Told you! And it will get even better once everything is finished" Lance beamed and started to apply the ointment on Keith's neck

Keith instantly stopped his own treatment as he felt Lance's hand on his neck, holding his breath. A shiver went through his entire body and he felt very... weird all of a sudden.

Lance didn't seem to notice, as he continued to gently rub the lotion in circular movements over Keith's neck, his fingernails almost touching his collarbone.

Keith suddenly felt very light-headed- and all he could focus on was just how good Lance's fingers felt on his neck.

The magic was lost when Lance removed his hand and Keith had to muster up all willpower in his body not to whine when the pleasant sensation disappeared from his neck. Lance reached out for a towel to dry the ointment off his hand and then tossed it over to Keith who caught it in the most ungraceful way ever, quickly drying his own hand.

"There! Let's just wait a few minutes for it to sink in before moving on to the next one" Lance said, the satisfaction evident in his voice as he turned around to face Keith

"Thanks" Keith quietly replied

"Are you sure that you are okay?" You look a little pale" Lance asked

"Yeah I- it's just a lot going on, right? It's hot and cold at the same time?" Keith replied nervously

"Dude, have you seriously never done any kind of skincare? Or wound treatment?" Lance exclaimed

"Not really? Just basic survival stuff?" Keith shrugged

"Jesus... Not sure if I should be jealous or not" Lance mumbled

"Excuse me?" Keith raised his eyebrows at Lance's words

Lance facepalmed himself mentally, did he really say that out loud?

"Ugh okay, so this is going to sound super weird, but I guess I can say it now since we're already in a weird situation. Your skin is fabulous, okay? And I don't get how it can be that way since you, obviously, don't put any effort on it except for keeping it clean with soap every day???" Lance sheepishly said and scratched the back of his head, clearly distressed.

The silence stretched through the room, and the two paladins just awkwardly looked at each other.

"Thanks?" Keith awkwardly squeaked out.

"No need to say it, it's weird. But now you know I guess? -Well look at the clock, think it's about time for step two?" Lance said hurriedly, turning to get the aloe vera bottle

Keith gently touched the rashes and noted that the skin was soft and the stickiness from the lotion was gone, almost a little fascinated by it.

It's not like he had never used any kind of skin treatment before or wound creams, but it was still very rarely occurring in usually just done in a haste, so he wasn't really familiar with how things operated in detail.

 

Lance quietly placed the Aloe vera bottle between them and both instantly repeated the same process that they'd done with the burn ointment. They both worked way faster this time and were finished in just a few minutes.

Keith quickly grabbed his tank top and yanked it over his head as soon as they were finished, sighing out in relief.

Lance watched Keith with an amused smirk, then he tossed another bottle at Keith who instantly caught it, inspecting it closely.

"What's this?" He asked

"Just some complementary maintainance, basically just aloe vera and some beeswax to keep the rashes soft and to speed up the healing a bit" Lance shrugged

"I'm mildly terrified at your knowledge, but also very- VERY grateful for it" Keith said with a small laugh

"So I'm safe to assume that you feel better?" Lance said with a goofy smile

"If! The itch is basically gone and I feel like a person again" Keith responded with another relieved sigh

"Told you that my Lancey Lance skills would be a magical experience" Lance said with a smirk

"Please don't say 'Lancey Lance', you are totally ruining the mood" Keith swatted his hand at Lance

"You are the worst" Lance pouted dramatically

"Seriously, I'm super grateful, but that word- or sentence or whatever is creeping me out" Keith said

"Whatever, mullet. I'm going to think of a juicy price for you to pay for my services" Lance said with a sinister grin

"I retain the right to refuse, if I deem it unfitting" Keith said solemnly

They both laughed a little at that. And even though the entire situation was weird and unusual, neither of them seemed to mind.

"So, suppose you'll come to Pidge's game night or whatever?" Lance said as Keith turned to leave

"I- don't know? It's not really my thing" Keith said, a little surprised as he'd already forgot about it

"Well, I'm gonna kick your ass in whatever game we're playing, so don't chicken out" Lance said with a smug grin

"Hah, as if" was Keith's final reply before he walked out of Lance's room with a small wave

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gayness rapidly increasing, sorry not sorry. I'm finally gonna write some real weird fluff in the next chapter, I've been waiting for this moment. Guess what games they're gonna play?


	8. Game night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time for Pidge's game night! What game are they gonna play, you ask?  
> I vaguely remember Pidge saying, and I quote "we need to set them up"- go figure!
> 
> \--------------------------------------------------  
> "Watch and learn- hmm let's see.." Lance let his eyes roam over everyone in the room, ultimately stopping at the- very tense Keith. He grinned slyly and pointed at the red paladin
> 
>  
> 
> "Keith"
> 
>  
> 
> "What?!" He snarled
> 
>  
> 
> "I choose you- truth or dare?" Lance said with a mischievous grin
> 
>  
> 
> "Nothing, I'm not playing" Keith deadpanned and crossed his arms

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ugh, this update took forever! I had like, the worst writer's block ever and working with my injured foot is really taking its toll. But whatever, I hope you'll enjoy this chapter, finally starting to get somewhere with this ship lol. 
> 
> Also, spacedad Shiro is strong in this one, keeping his children in order. '  
> And Pidge is a little shit in this, sorry not sorry.
> 
> Sidenote: I added tags for drug use. There are no drugs in this story, but that tea is weird and makes people lose control soooo... yeah

A few hours later, Keith found himself standing outside the door to the common area, still debating with himself internally if he should go in or not. 

 

It's not like he was afraid of playing games with his comrades, he just didn't want to waste time.  And maybe he didn't like to be caught up in stuff that he couldn't leave just like that.

 

He sighed and turned around to leave, when he felt a hand on his shoulder, making him yelp and look up, only to meet Shiro's warm eyes.

 

"Hey Keith, how're your rashes doing?" Shiro asked 

 

"Oh, they're fine thanks. Almost forgot I had them" Keith replied and sheepishly rubbed his left arm

 

"That's so good to hear. Are you coming?" Shiro beamed

 

"Coming where?" Keith asked

 

"To play games of course! Thought Pidge mentioned it to you this morning?" Shiro said

 

"Oh- yeah, right, I had already forgotten about that- good thing I just happened to be here right now- what a coincidence" Keith awkwardly blurted out and followed Shiro inside

 

Once inside, Keith noted that it was only himself and Shiro that had been missing, everyone else was already spread out on the couches. Pidge, Hunk and Lance on one end and Allura and Coran on the other.

 

"Oh my gosh, Pidge- look who's here" Hunk said from the couch and nudged Pidge rather forcefully with his elbow

 

Pidge groaned and mumbled out a barley hearable 'Fine, you win' and reached out her small hand to shake Hunk's, sighing again in defeat as Hunk grinned and raised his fist.

 

Keith gave them both a confused look, before following Shiro to the couches, sitting down beside him and Coran.

 

"Keith! How are you? Feeling better?" Coran asked as soon as Keith came into view

 

"Yeah I'm fine, as good as new" Keith responded with a small smile

 

"That's wonderful news! I must admit that I was quite worried about you. If you don't mind me asking, did they heal up on their own, or did you treat them yourself somehow?" Coran asked, eyes gleaming with interest

 

"I uh... it was actually Lance who came up with the idea on how to treat them, it was all his doing"  Keith said shyly, backing off slightly as Coran leaned in closer, inspecting the rashes

 

"Way to go Lance!" Hunk cheered and slapped Lance in the back, making the other paladin cough and squeak out a small 'thanks' between gasps.

 

"Who would've known that you were capable of such a feat" Pidge teased with a sinister grin aimed towards Lance

 

"Shut it, midget" Lance muttered, still trying to regain his breath

 

Pidge smacked Lance in the head at that, making the other paladin double over again and groan loudly.

 

"Okay, that's enough." Shiro said with a stern look on his face

 

"So, what kind of game are we playing?" Allura asked, looking around expectedly at everyone

 

"Well, our original plan backfired- see, we were going to play Monsters and Mana, but the module just wouldn't work and not even Pidge could fix it, so we where thinking card games. But the mice did chew on a few cards- so we can't do that either" Hunk explained and scratched the back of his head

 

"But! I figured we could just play some good old parlor games, like truth or dare?" Pidge flicked in

 

"I have never heard of it, what are the rules?" Coran asked, tearing his attention from Keith's rashes- allowing the latter to escape to the opposite end of the couch

 

"It's easy, truth or dare is basically that one participant gets the question 'truth or dare', if they chose truth, the first player will ask a question that they have to answer truthfully, if they chose dare, the first player will give them a simple task to complete. When the second player has completed their task, it's their turn to ask another participant 'truth or dare' and then it just goes on like that. It's funny, we used to do it a lot back at the garrison" Pidge explained

 

"Also, the dares can't be dangerous and the truths can't be too exposing. Like, we are close as a group, but if there are things you don't want to share, then we have to respect it" Hunk flicked in with a serious expression

 

"I actually think that this is a good idea, it will be like a team bonding exercise"  Shiro said and looked around at everyone

 

Lance glanced over at Keith, he suspected that the red paladin wouldn't be thrilled by the choice of game- and boy was he right. Keith looked like he was literally about to crawl out of his skin, his shoulders tense and he had a strained expression on his face. 

 

_ Lance almost felt sorry the other paladin- Almost. _

 

He shook his head, what was he even thinking?

 

"Okay, so who wants to start?" Hunk asked out loud

 

"I can do it" Lance shrugged

 

"Great, you're on!" Pidge said and gave Lance the thumbs up

 

"Watch and learn- hmm let's see.."  Lance let his eyes roam over everyone in the room, ultimately stopping at the- very tense Keith. He grinned slyly and pointed at the red paladin

 

"Keith"

 

"What?!" He snarled

 

"I choose you- truth or dare?" Lance said with a mischievous grin

 

"Nothing, I'm not playing" Keith deadpanned and crossed his arms

 

"Come on, don't be like that" Lance said, gaining support with nods from everyone else in the room

 

Shiro nudged Keith lightly in the side, giving him an encouraging smile.

 

Keith sighed loudly before throwing a challenging glare at Lance.

 

"Fine, dare."

 

"There we go! I dare you to drink Coran's washer fluid tea" Lance said

 

"Oh my god, good one Lance!" Pidge doubled over in laughter at her end of the couch

 

"Are you serious?! You got high as a house last time you took that stuff- what if somebody attacks?! It's just stupid" Keith shrieked and threw a death glare at Lance

 

"Actually, I think it's a good idea. The tea is just supposed to have a relaxing effect, it might do you good- I will back in a second" Coran flicked in before standing up and heading for the kitchen

 

"I hate- all of you" Keith hissed

_ Not even two minutes passed before Coran came back with a mug in his hand, offering it to Keith who reluctantly took it.  _

 

He inspected the liquid closely, mildly horrified by the blue color. 

 

"It's not boiling hot, I figured that you would want to down it in one go and get it over with" Coran said with an apologetic smile

 

Keith just nodded and threw one last glare at Lance, emptying the mug in one swing as he did so.

 

Hunk and Pidge cheered as Keith completed his task, giving him the thumbs up.

 

"So now it's Keith's turn to ask someone- right?" Allura asked

 

"Yep, you got it" Hunk responded

 

"Whatever, this is stupid. Pidge? " Keith sighed

 

"Uh, truth?" Pidge hesitantly answered

 

"Books or movies?"

 

"Ugh, I hate you! ...books? Or movies... I don't know, books?!" Pidge exclaimed, ripping her hair lightly

 

Keith just shrugged and leaned back on the couch, marking that his turn was officially over.

 

"Okay, Allura? Truth or dare?" Pidge cleared her throat and asked 

 

"Oh goddess, truth?" Allura said excitedly

 

"What's your favorite flower?" Pidge asked

 

"That's easy, the Altean purple Juneberry flowers of course! They are gorgeous to look at and they smell lovely" Allura replied with a fond gleam in her eyes

 

****

**_The rest of the game played out rather peacefully, Shiro and Allura had a staredown wich Shiro won, Hunk was dared to lift up Pidge Lion king style, Keith had to answer what his last meal in his life would be if he could choose, Keith then forced Lance to walk around with rocks in his shoes as punishment for the tea thing, and so on._  **

somewhere in the middle, Keith started to feel.. off. He was still sharp enough to see and hear what everyone did and said, but he had this- pleasant doziness lingering in him. It was actually nice for a change, to just sit down and not be on edge every second. Maybe the tea wasn't so bad after all. 

 

Pidge noted how Keith had seemingly relaxed quite a bit and nudged Hunk in the side, nodding towards the red paladin. 

 

They both shared an excited grin and nodded lightly towards each other.

 

"Lance- truth or dare?" Pidge asked and turned towards Lance

 

"Hmm.. dare?" Lance replied, stretching out his back a little as he spoke

 

_ Pidge internally grinned like a maniac. _

 

"Okay let's see.."  Pidge said, looking around the room and pretended to think deeply

 

"I want you to kiss Keith for five seconds" She finally said, barely containing her mischievous intent

 

Lance's jaw dropped and the entire room went silent.

 

"What?! Nonononnono absolutely not!" Lance's arms flailed wildly, his face red and eyes huge

 

"Oh come on, it can't be that bad?" Pidge said in an innocent tone

 

"N-no- yes! Yes it is!" Lance shrieked

 

"It's just five seconds of your life Lance, surely it could be worse?" Hunk flicked in

 

Lance glanced over at Keith, who was currently heavily leaning onto the armrest, seemingly half out of it. He was defiantly not aware of what was happening around him, that's for sure.

 

"Keith! Don't you have anything to say about this?!" Lance yelled at the red paladin

 

"What?" He answered in an annoyed tone, lifting his head slightly

 

" I- Pidge just dared me to kiss you!" Lance shrieked

 

"I really don't care" Keith deadpanned with a shrug and leaned down on the armrest again

 

"See, you even got his consent" Pink said sweetly

 

"He's high! So it shouldn't count" Lance retorted

 

"He's not high, just relaxed" Coran flicked in

 

Lance groaned loudly and smacked his hand onto his face as he realized that there was just no getting out of this. He finally took a deep breath and nodded.

 

"Whatever, I'll do it- but I will get back to you later Midget" Lance said with a glare aimed at Pidge and walked over to Keith, crouching down in front of the other paladin

 

"Hey Mullet, are you still with us?" Lance asked, carefully brushing Keith's bangs aside on instinct

 

"Sharp as ever" Keith said  in a raspy voice, looking up from his half laying position, his cloudy eyes betraying his words

 

"Your not very convincing" Lance mumbled with a small sigh, hesitantly cupping Keith's jaw.

 

 _'You can do it Lance, just five seconds_ ' he thought as he leaned in and closed the distance between them, angling his face slightly with half-lidded eyes as their lips met.

 

 

 

_ It was just a gentle press of lips really, nothing special- but it had Lance's head spinning. Like- how could Keith be so... soft?  _

 

_ "Ooooooneeeeee" Pidge counted loudly in the background. _

 

Lance closed his eyes fully and melted into the kiss, it was actually... pretty nice he had to admit. 

 

_ "Twoooooooo" _

 

It was strange how the two of them just seemed to fit, like a puzzle that was finally complete- and everything just felt right about it.

 

_ "Threeeeeeeeeeeee" _

 

Lance was surprised when he felt Keith lean into the kiss, lightly increasing the pressure.

 

He noted how somebody whistled behind them.

 

_ "Fooooooouuuuuuur" _

 

Lance slowly caressed Keith's cheek with his thumb 'This is so weird' he thought.

 

_ "Aaaaaaand- Fiiiiiiiiiiiive" Pidge really took her time with that last one _

 

At the count of five, they broke apart.

 

Lance's eyes shot open and he was met by Keith's confused gray ones.

 

Keith's expression was hard to describe with words, it was almost like he had just now registered what had happened, and silently asking both himself and lance for answers.

 

And to be honest, Lance didn't know the answer himself. It was just a stupid game after all. Lance broke eye contact with Keith and instead fixed his gaze on the floor, he felt very exposed all of a sudden. 

 

"Wow, I can almost see the sparkles flying around" Hunk said with a small cough

 

"Watch it, it might be contagious" Pidge responded, sarcasm and amusement coating her words.

 

"W-Well" Lance cleared his throat and flickered his gaze, not really knowing where to look. He couldn't bring himself to look at Keith right now- and he definitely didn't want to see Pidge's shit-eating grin.

 

"Now- either you go on with your life as usual- or you could marry Keith- it's your call" Pidge said with a smug face

 

"Pidge- you're overdoing it" Shiro scolded from his corner

 

"Yeah your right, sorry" Pidge said, scratching the back of her head in an embarrassed way

 

 Lance hesitantly let his gaze wander back to Keith; who had turned his head slightly, looking away from Lance with a blank unreadable expression and half-lidded eyes. It almost looked like he had fallen asleep with his eyes still open.

 

"Are you alive?" Lance asked, meant as a joke

 

No verbal response came; Instead, Keith lifted his head slightly, only for his upper body to fall over the edge of the couch.  Luckily Lance was quick to react and managed to push himself forward so that Keith fell into a position where his upper body was leaning into Lance's shoulder and his lower remained on the couch.

 

"Ugh.. balance s'not working" Keith slurred against Lance's shoulder, trying to lift his head but failing miserably

 

"Uh- yeah I, I kind of noticed. You okay?" Lance asked, mentally slapping himself- _of course, he wasn't okay!_

 

"Shit..." Keith mumbled after he did one last failed attempt to get up before his vision went black _;  and with a soft thud, Keith went limp against Lance._

"Keith?" Lance gently nudged Keith's shoulder with an awkward expression on his face

 

When no response came, he started to panic inwardly and shook Keith lightly. "Hey!"

 

"Wow, I think we successfully short-circuited Keith" Pidge said sarcastically, lifting her head slightly to get a better view of what was happening.

 

"Guys, I'm serious! I think he's unconscious" Lance yelled as he tried to keep both him and the other paladin from falling, which was quite a feat considering that Lance was crouching down, balancing on his toes and support both himself and Keith.

 

In an instant, Shiro and Hunk were behind them, supporting Lance and gently maneuvering Keith back into a laying position on the couch. 

 

The silence stretched out in the room, the entire crew were solely focused on the red paladin laying unconscious _(or sleeping?- no one really knew_ )  on the couch.

 

 

 

* * *

 

"Seriously, what did just happen???" Hunk finally said 

 

"I'm worried, is he going to be all right?" Allura asked with her hand brought up to her cheek in a distressed way

 

"Perhaps his oxygen levels are low?" Coran suggested

 

"I'm 100% sure that it was your crazy tea that knocked him out! Seriously- what's even in that stuff?!" Lance shrieked out to Coran

 

"Nonsense- there is nothing but herbs in it! It's Altean tradition!" Coran replied with a defensive glare

 

"Then you Alteans are a bunch of stoners!" Lance yelled

 

Both Allura and Coran gasped loudly with horrified expressions."Wait a second, what is a 'stoner'?" Coran added

 

At that, Pidge burst out in laughter and doubled over on the floor, hammering her hand down while gasping for air.

 

**"Stop it, all of you!"**

 

Everybody turned their attention toward Shiro who was standing in the middle of the group with his arms crossed and a stern look on his face. Pidge immediately stood up beside Hunk, dusting her knees off lightly.

 

Shiro turned to Lance, who quickly shrunk under Shiro's gaze, swallowing quietly as he waited for their leader to speak.

"We shouldn't bicker among ourselves like this, I understand that you are worried right now Lance and has trouble expressing yourself, but don't start unnessicary arguments." Shiro said, his gaze softening as he spoke, making Lance drop his tense shoulders slightly

 

"Also, until it's ingredients are properly analyzed and documented, nobody is making or drinking that tea again. Keith was right, it's unfitting if anyone is under its influence if we're getting attacked" Shiro continued, turning to Coran.

 

Coran opened his mouth to answer, but Shiro threw him a challenging glance that quickly made him opt for a nod and a silent ' _yes_ ' instead.

 

"So, what happens now? Will Keith be alright?" Allura asked

 

"As much as I hate to admit it, I think Lance is right. Keith is probably just asleep by the effects of that tea, so he will surely wake up in a little while." Shiro said, turning to look at the boy sleeping on the couch. He was laying with his head rested on his left arm, his bangs covering half of his face.  His breathing was so quiet, the only sign proving that he was alive was the small rises of his chest as he breathed.

 

Lance felt a pang in his chest as he watched the other paladin, he looked so... fragile all of a sudden.

 

"Well, I think it's best if I take him to his room so that he can sleep in his own bed- knowing Keith he'd probably be terrified if he woke up here"  Shiro said with a small shrug

 

"Do you need any help carrying him?" Hunk offered

 

"Thank you Hunk, but I think I'll manage it on my own" Shiro replied with a warm smile 

 

"Somebody should check up on him in a while though, to make sure everything is all right" Coran said

 

_Before he knew it, Lance had reluctantly put his hand up in the air, glancing sideways as he opened his mouth to speak._

 

"I can do it- I'm pretty sure that the burns need to be treated, and since I did it before then I might as well do it again" he said

 

_ Everybody in the room turned in surprise at Lance's words, nobody had expected him to be the one to offer his help to Keith of all people. _

 

"That would be great, thank you Lance" Shiro replied, smiling softly at the younger paladin who immediately lowered his gaze and scratched the back of his head with a shy smile, mumbling a small _'don't mention it'._

 

Pidge observed the scene before her with an amused look, nudging Hunk in the side and threw her glance towards Lance then back at Hunk who seemed to catch on with a grin.

 

They watched as Shiro gently squeezed Lance's shoulder before walking over to the couch where Keith quietly dozed, carefully placing one arm under the underside of his knees and the other around his back, gently lifting the sleeping paladin. 

 

With one small nod of his head towards his crew, Shiro left the room with Keith in his arms.

 

_ After Shiro had left, they all agreed to end the game night then and there- and soon they all went their separate ways; Hunk and Pidge being the only ones left in the common area. _

 

"Sooo, who do you think will figure it out first?" Hunk asked out loud, arms behind his back as he leaned into the couch

 

"Well, they are both idiots but like- You can see from a mile away that Lance has the hots for Keith so, my bet is on loverboy. I think emo boy is as clueless as you can get" Pidge replied in a monotone voice, pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose

 

"Yeah, same. At least Lance knows a little about romance" Hunk said with a small laugh

 

"Eww, gross. I don't know if helping them out was a mistake or not though" Pidge said with a shrug, flashing a sneaky grin

 

"Only time will tell my friend, but if our actions will help them find peace and balance- then it will defiantly be worth it, even if it's like- super weird" Hunk said solemnly

 

"If they get all lovey-dovey then I will leave this ship imminently" Pidge said with a gagging noise

 

_They both shared a laugh, before changing the subject into something totally different._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so, I had a plan for this chapter- but it went totally out of the window. Like, it's kinda good, but not really how I expected it? IDK, but it turned out fine so its chill. 
> 
> I'm having trouble with the next chapter like, Lance is acting like a creep and I dunno why and what to do about it??? HORMONES???? Seriously, it's bugging me a little but whatever.


	9. Keith won't remember this night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was just a stupid dare that lasted for five seconds of his life, but it had looped on his mind constantly for hours. How oddly satisfying it had been, how he wanted to do it again.
> 
> No.
> 
> No.
> 
> Lance did not want to kiss Keith again.
> 
> Nope.
> 
> Or.
> 
> Yes, yes he wanted to. And it was weird and scary- having those thoughts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heeeeeya'll! I'm alive, my foot is crap and work kills me, BUT i managed to provide! This chapter contains shitloads with both angst and fluff, I mashed the idea for two chapters together into this one, so it's basically just one giant mood swing lol. But hopefully, you'll enjoy this~  
> Sidenote: Keith is semi-high through the entire chapter, just thought I'd tell you.

**Lance had been a nervous wreck for the past few hours**.

He had basically been pacing back and forth in his room the entire time since he got back there after he left the common area, internally panicking over his situation.

He had thought about Keith, _like how he had started to tolerate him without even noticing_? He had played their last encounters over and over in his head; what they did together was defiantly stuff friends could do. But were he and Keith friends? Hell no! Keith and he were rivals, rivals that tolerated each other and could act in a friendly manner- end of story.

But if that was the case, why couldn't he stop thinking about Keith? His fabulous soft skin, the way that the rashes had healed up to become simple burns, coloring spots of his skin like a map; giving him an exotic touch. His stunning, intense gray eyes and that soft- stupid- mullet. And last but not least, his surprisingly soft lips.

_God, why couldn't Lance stop thinking about that kiss?_

It was just a stupid dare that lasted for five seconds of his life, but it had looped on his mind constantly for hours. How oddly satisfying it had been, how he wanted to do it again.

_No._

_No._

_Lance did not want to kiss Keith again._

_Nope._

_Or._

_Yes, yes he wanted to_. And it was weird and scary- having those thoughts.

As he stood in front of the door, he started to regret that he'd volunteer for this. It was a bad idea, but he really wanted to see with his own eyes that Keith was okay. Because he was worried.

Lance took a deep breath, lifting his hand up and moving it to knock- only to withdraw it again. Repeating this a few times before finally making up his mind, tapping the door lightly.

As expected, no response came. He tried once more- a little harder this time. "Mullet, are you in there?" he asked quietly against the door.

He waited a few seconds in silence before going for the handle, opening the door and entering the room.

The lights were out and Lance had to blink a few times for his eyes to adjust to the darkness, but after a few seconds he could make out the figure laying on the bed.

Keith was sleeping on his right side with his arms tucked in under his head, his expression was blank and his breath came out in quiet- almost unhearable puffs.

Lance felt very weird all of a sudden, standing frozen on the spot and just watching Keith while he slept.

 _'Should I wake him up? Or should I just check up on him and pray that he doesn't? Or is that weird?_ ' Lance thought to himself, nervously sweeping his foot on the floor, flickering his gaze back and forth.

Finally, Lance hesitantly made his way for the bed; his gaze fixed on Keith as he walked.

' _God, this is so weird_ ' Lance thought to himself

Suddenly, Keith shifted slightly in his sleep; causing Lance to freeze up on the spot. His eyes slowly fluttered open, gaze dimmingly scanning the room without really registering anything.

"Keith..?" Lance asked hesitantly, almost in a whisper

_No response._

"Are you okay? How are you feeling?" Lance continued, taking a step closer; now standing right beside the bed.

Keith slowly lifted his head meeting Lance's gaze with half-lidded eyes, his gray irises dull and clouded. He opened his mouth to speak, but no sound came.

Lance felt a pang in his chest, he felt horrible all of a sudden for making Keith drink that tea. His intentions had been harmless and to some extent good, sure. But seeing the other paladin like this made him feel guilty, as he was totally defenseless.

Lance felt the urge to caress his cheek once more, perhaps to comfort himself rather than Keith? In the back of his mind, his rationality was screaming at him that this entire situation was just weird and that he should just bail, but at the moment- his body and mind weren't at the same level.

"Oh, Keith.." He whispered, extending his hand towards him, ghosting his fingers over the other paladin's jawline.

At that, Keith let out a relieved sigh and leaned into Lance's touch, closing his eyes again.

The reaction surprised Lance, his instincts telling him to withdraw his hand, but he didn't.

He just stood there, watching Keith as he rested against Lance's hand. His bangs had once again fallen into his face

Lance swallowed hard, feeling tears swell up to his eyes as the seconds ticked by and his chest suddenly felt very heavy.

He tried to blink the tears away, but they quickly became too much to contain and spilled over onto Lance's cheeks.

"Shit.." He muttered quietly as he used the back of his arm to rub away the tears from his eyes. He froze up as he felt something tug on his shirt, he slowly removed his elbow and opened his eyes, only to meet Keith's gray ones.

"Lan..ce' .. " Keith managed to rasp out, tugging at Lance's shirt once again as he spoke.

"Yeah..?" Lance replied quietly

"Why... Are you- sad?" he asked

"...What?" Lance whispered

"Are you.. crying- because you're sad?" Keith said, each word coming out strained

Lance didn't answer, he just watched Keith with a puzzled expression; he didn't even bother to wipe the tears that streamed down on his face.

Seriously, why did Keith care so much? Why did he care about Lance's wellbeing when he could hardly keep his eyes open, struggling to just stay awake- because of Lance's stupid dare? Hell, if Keith wanted nothing to do with Lance, he would totally understand it. But that wasn't the case right now, because Lance was the one crying and feeling miserable- and Keith was the one trying to make him feel better. It was just weird, and Lance just couldn't understand it.

Keith eventually slumped down onto the bed, exhaustion overtaking him instantly. He closed his eyes and tried to breathe in an even rhythm, his hand still gripping the fabric of Lance's shirt.

"Shit.. just- talk to me. Please" he said, voice hoarse and ragged

"Keith I- I don't know. I'm just messed up right now" Lance finally said, the lump in his throat getting thicker with each word he spoke.

Lance covered his own mouth with his palm and doubled over slightly, his shoulders shaking violently as he tried to suppress the tears, but failing miserably.

Keith silently watched the scene before him, eyes huge as a few of Lance's tears dripped onto his own face. Seeing the way Lance's breath hitched in his throat, shoulders heaving uncontrollably- and his sobs muffled against his palm; It broke Keith.

"Lance" Keith breathed out his name staring up at Lance with glassy eyes. His firm grip on Lance's shirt turned his knuckles white. "It's okay. Let it out- You-... You're not alone"

Time seemingly stopped after Keith had spoken those last words; Lance slowly let his shocked gaze wander to meet up with Keith's hurt gray eyes.

They silently watched each other, neither of them knowing what was going on inside the other's head.  
The desperation and hurt in Keith's eyes were eminent, the dullness caused by the tea was rapidly fading as Keith's mind was starting to clear. He didn't know how, but he wanted to comfort Lance. _Protect him._

He did the only thing that came to mind then and there; he pulled Lance down into a tight embrace. Lance let out a surprised yelp as he nearly lost his balance and tripped over the other paladin.

The position was nothing less than awkward since Lance was still standing and Keith was half lying on the bed, both trying to keep their balance and support each other at the same time.

"Keith? What are you-" Lance began to ask, but Keith quickly interrupted him with a low hush

"Just- Don't ever do that again, Lance" Keith mumbled into Lance's shoulder

"What?"

"Don't hold back. If you want to cry, do it- If you want to say something, say it. It's okay" Keith said, voice breaking halfway through his small speech, the last words coming out hoarse

Lance was shocked, to say the least- and he was silently starting to wonder if their awkward embrace was Keith's way to comfort himself rather than Lance. He wasn't stupid, he could tell from a mile away that Keith was more upset than he let on.

Lance leaned forward and hugged Keith tightly, burying his face in that stupid black mullet.

"Thanks Keith, that means a lot to hear" He cracked out in a low voice, tears threatening to resurface once more

"S' okay" Keith mumbled with a small sigh

They silently embraced each other like that for what felt like forever, both of them clinging on to the other as if their lives depended on it.

Eventually, their tight embrace softened; and Lance slowly pulled away, straightening up his upper body without reaching full height. Keith reluctantly let go of Lance, releasing his hold at the last second possible.

A comfortable silence stretched out in the room, neither of them knew what to say, but at the same time, they didn't feel the need to.

They were just simply enjoying each other's company, oddly enough. 

 

_After a few minutes like that, Keith finally stirred to life and broke the silence._

 

"Lance" Keith said in a low voice, tugging gently at the other paladin's shirt.

The way Keith's voice dropped instantly caught Lance's attention. He slowly pushed himself up a few inches more so that his head was just above Keith's, he tilted his head slightly and looked into those gray half-lidded eyes with a confused expression on his face.

Keith's other hand found its way up to Lance's cheek, caressing it gently.

"Come here" Keith murmured

"Huh?"

Lance moved closer to Keith, almost as if the gentle tug on his shirt railed him in towards him. They were just inches apart now and the way Keith's breath ghosted over Lance's face made him shiver.

Almost in slow motion, Keith pulled Lance down and kissed him.

Lance didn't even have time to register what had happened before he closed his eyes and instinctively kissed back with a relieved sigh. It was almost ironically, how all Lance's prior worries just seemed to melt off as soon as they connected.

Lance hesitantly raised his left hand and ran it through Keith's hair, gently combing through it with his fingers, scissoring them at the ends to not cause discomfort.

Keith let out a small sound against Lance's lips, angling his face slightly to deepen the kiss. His hands still firmly gripping Lance's shirt. His fingers twitched slightly, instincts encouraging him to touch and explore, but rationality whispering in the back of his mind to stay put.

Lance was the one to eventually break the kiss, the need for air overthrowing his desire to continue. Keith whimpered slightly as they broke apart, instantly opening his eyes and locking his gaze with Lance's.

They were both breathing harshly, Keith's shoulders heaving as he let out rapid puffs of air.

Lance watched Keith with a dumbstruck expression, the deep blush on his face contrasting the red paladin's pale skin; and if Lance didn't know better he'd thought that Keith had a bad case of bed head. The hair on his left side pointing outwards slightly after Lance had been playing with his hair during the kiss.

 _'Stunning'_ Lance thought to himself when he looked at Keith.

Keith was stunning and it hit Lance like a brick in the head when it dawned upon him where his mind was going. His own blush deepened and he averted his gaze from Keith's piercing one. He suddenly felt like he'd just woken up from a dream, not knowing where he was or what he had done- except that he did. And it made him confused beyond his own understanding.

Lance glanced back at Keith, just in time to see him close his eyes and slowly slump back against the pillows in his bed with a soft sigh, a small content smile plastered on his face.

Silence stretched out in the room and Lance just stood by the bedside, unable to move.

Keith's breath grew more even and quiet by the second- and it didn't take long before Lance realized that the other paladin had fallen asleep.

As if someone had hit him with a sledgehammer, Lance's legs disappeared under him and he sank down into a sitting position with his back facing towards Keith.

He stared blankly into the wall, eyes wide and unblinking. He slowly lifted his hand up to his lips, ghosting his fingers over them.

"Holy shit.." He whispered, barely breaking the silence of the room

He jumped slightly when he heard a quiet rustling behind him. He turned around only to see that Keith had shifted his position in the bed, now laying flat on his stomach with his face buried in his pillow.

He watched the other paladin with a dumbstruck expression as the realization hit him with full force:

_He may or may not have wandered beyond the line of just tolerating Keith's company; He wanted it, bad._

**_Also, he had totally forgotten that he was supposed to treat Keith's rashes._ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soo, I'm itching to write a roof scene again, so next chapter will take place there.  
> Thank you for staying with me <3 
> 
> Also, I feel very bad for my boys like, Lance is so in denial and Keith is just confused? I guess? IDK I'm just writing shit to relieve stress


	10. Night on the roof

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Hey, come find me when ur awake and feel like a person, gotta talk to you. Uh, roof? -Lance"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! So I, I actually finished this a couple of days ago, but there was this huge thunderstorm where I live and my internet crashed so yeah, couldn't upload it.  
> It's still down but I realized that I could share internet from my phone temporary soooo~
> 
> Take note: Lance is an emotional wreck and Keith has some slight amnesia BECAUSE WHY NOT

Keith woke up several hours later in his room.  He slowly sat up, groaning quietly and put a hand to his aching head. He didn't know why, but for some reason, he felt like crap.  
He just sat like that for a while, staring blankly into the wall as he tried to piece together what had happened the day before, but to no avail.

  
He remembered going on a mission with Coran and walking into a bush that had caused itching rashes.  
He slowly put a hand up to his neck, dragging it across it and up towards his jawline.  
The rashes had calmed down significantly, if Keith didn't know that they'd been there, he wouldn't have thought much of it.   
There was a slight itch and the skin was a bit sensitive, but otherwise, he felt fine.

 _So, did they just heal up by themselves or had he done something about it?_ Keith had no clue, his blank mind not providing any answers.

  
A white scrap of paper beside his pillow suddenly caught his attention, and he reached out to pick it up.  
It was slightly crumpled, probably due to himself sleeping on it, he noted.

  
He slowly unfolded it to reveal a note in a horrible curved but sloppy handwriting;  He came to the conclusion that the person that had written the note had been nervous and in a hurry as if they'd decided in the last second that they needed to write a note before leaving.

  
Keith felt a pang of uneasiness settle in his gut- _Someone had been in his room while he was sleeping._  
He quickly shook his head and turned his attention at the note again, eyes going wide as he read its content.  
_'Wait what?'_

**_ "Hey, come find me when ur awake and feel like a person, gotta talk to you. Uh, roof? -Lance" _ **

Keith read the note over and over again, the gears in his head slowly turning as he tried to make sense of it.

  
_Why had Lance been in his room when he was asleep? And what did he want to talk about? And what did he mean by 'feel like a person?' Had he gotten sick or something yesterday?_

  
The feeling of uncertainty came creeping back, it disturbed him to no end that he couldn't fully remember any of the day prior. _And what about Lance?_  
_What if Lance was sad and needed to talk? What if he was feeling lonely and cried?_

  
Keith felt a pang of guilt in his chest, how long had it been since Lance had left the note?

  
He stood up a little too quickly, instantly putting his hand against the wall to steady himself up. The room was spinning and he was feeling nauseous.  
_'Seriously, what happened yesterday?_ ' he thought to himself as he put his free hand against his forehead, leaning against the wall.

  
He vaguely remembered meeting up with everyone in the common area, but he couldn't make out when or what they had done. Mabie, they were talking strategies?  
Well, first things first: he had to find Lance. Surely he would be able to provide some answers.

  
He slowly pushed himself from the wall and took a few staggering steps towards the door, cursing under his breath as nausea washed over him once again, but kept on going anyway.

  
The walk through the corridor's of the castle seemed endless- but eventually, he spotted the door that leads up to the roof. 

  
With renewed energy, he pushed himself the final steps before he reached his destination.  
He silently wondered if Lance was even there, considering that he'd likely left the note hours ago- and Keith didn't really expect Lance to sit around and wait for hours just in case he decided to show up.

  
_'Whatever'_ he thought and went for the handle, opened the door and entered the roof.

To his surprise, the sun had yet to rise- the pale light of dawn coloring everything in a pleasant purple-blue tone. He'd half expected it to be a little later, but apparently, he was wrong.

  
Keith blinked a few times and scanned the roof for Lance, noticing only something.. laying?  A few strides away. He quickly walked towards whatever it was, it didn't look like a person from his distance, rather a long- thin pile of something.

  
He was proven wrong however as he neared the lump and noticed that it was indeed Lance- sleeping.  
Lance slept on his left side, resting his head on his arm that was neatly tucked under it. His long legs were slightly curved and his mouth wasn't fully closed, making a small stream of drool escape.

Keith watched the other paladin dumbfounded. Why was he sleeping on the roof?

  
His lips curved upwards awkwardly in a wry smile at the thought, suddenly remembering how distressed Lance got when he had speculated that Keith may or may not sleep on the roof.   
But now the tables had turned, and Lance was the one sleeping like a baby up here.

Keith just stood there as the seconds ticked by and he silently asked himself if it would be okay to wake Lance up, or if he should leave him be.

  
He shook his head slightly after arguing with himself internally for a minute;  leaving without answers wouldn't do him any good.

  
He crouched down in front of Lance, gently nudging the other paladin's shoulder with a quiet _'hey'_  
Lance groaned quietly, his elbow muffling the sound.  Keith sighed and shook his shoulder rather forcefully this time.

"Lance, wake up!" He said, voice stern

  
"Nh... Keith- "  Lance mumbled before he suddenly tensed, eyes opening in a flash. He stared up at Keith, blinked rapidly a few times and then jolted up at a speed that anyone could argue whether it was humanly possible or not- effectively startling Keith in the process.

  
Keith had pushed himself over a meter or so from Lance in an instant, now half sitting with one hand on the ground, ready to bolt at any second.

  
"Keith?! Oh my god, you- you scared me!" Lance shrieked, shoulder's heaving rapidly

  
Keith's eye twitched "Me? Did **I** scare **you**? You almost gave me a heart attack!" he shot back

  
"Yeah well, same goes for me! I was asleep literally ten seconds ago- and now I feel like I've run a marathon! My blood pressure is surely like, dangerously high!"  Lance crossed his arms and twisted his face into a childish pout

  
Keith slapped his hand into his own face and dragged it down slowly, his patience running lower by the second.

"Okay so, heart attacks aside- how are you feeling?"  Lance suddenly asked 

  
"I.. I don't know? I'm dizzy and I have a bad headache" Keith replied, lowering his guard and sitting down properly on the ground.

  
"Well, I'm not surprised- you really outdid yourself yesterday" Lance said with a small shrug

  
"..What?"

  
Lance carefully let his eyes roam over Keith, a small blush creeping up from his neck to ears.

  
"Yeah- you know.." He began, rubbing his left arm sheepishly

  
"I hardly remember anything from yesterday" Keith quickly said

  
Lance's jaw dropped and he froze in place, raising his right arm - mouth opening and closing without producing anything but a few stammering noises.

  
 "Y-You... What?!" Lance gasped, pointing shakily at Keith

  
"You heard me. The only thing I remember is going on that mission in the morning with Coran, the rest is a blur" Keith deadpanned, locking gazes with Lance

  
Keith could almost see the gears in Lance's head turning as he processed what he'd just said, a feeling of uneasiness creeping upon him as he watched Lance's face wear a mildly horrified expression, his fingers twitching slightly.

  
"Lance?"

  
"So... nothing except the mission? Not even bits and pieces?" Lance hesitantly said

  
Keith went silent for a minute, thinking deeply before shaking his head. "No, sorry"

  
Lance buried his head in his hands and nervously dragged them across his face, obviously going through some kind of unspoken inner crisis.  
Keith patiently waited for Lance to speak, the stress of not knowing what was going on was really taking its toll on his mind.  
At last, Lance took a deep breath, patted his own face lightly while silently whispering _'okay, okay, let's do this_ ', before looking up at Keith and opened his mouth to speak.

"Okay so, you remember coming back from that mission covered in rashes, right? Well, I helped you threat them with my awesome knowledge on skincare, does that ring any bells?"  Lance explained

  
Keith tried to remember and frankly, he had some distant memory of him and Lance walking through the halls together toward Lance's room.  Another one came sneaking in the back of his mind, him sitting on a stool in the middle of the room, smearing some kind of lotion on the rashes.

  
"..Yeah? I think I might remember some of it, no details though" Keith finally replied

  
"That's good, uh- I have no idea what you did after we were done treating the rashes though, I just left" Lance continued with a small shrug

Keith nodded slowly, waiting for Lance to continue.

  
_But he didn't._

  
Lance was silently fidgeting with the hem of his shirt, not looking Keith directly in the eye.  
If he thought that he could fool Keith into believing that that was all there was to it, then he was seriously just plain stupid.

  
"Lance" Keith said, dragging out the name in a demanding tone

  
"I- uh, I guess my memory is a bit fuzzy too? Suddenly, the evening just disappeared, weird huh?!" Lance's voice cracked when he spoke, his gaze darting everywhere in the room except for at Keith.  
   
Keith just raised his eyebrow at that, shooting Lance an _'I don't believe you'_ face.  Lance sighed and put both his hands up in surrender.

  
"Okay so, your probably not going to believe me, but long story short: we all played truth or dare in the common room and I dared you to drink Coran's crazy tea, which affected you so much that you passed out, right after Pidge dared me to- " Lance cut himself off before he could finish, was it really a good idea to tell Keith?  He bit the inside of his cheek, eyes flickering between the floor and Keith.

"Pidge dared you to what?" Keith asked, his intense  gaze seemingly pinning Lance on his spot

"Uhm.. okay, I'm going to tell you, but don't get me wrong, everyone- yourself included, agreed that you were able to say yes or no yourself,  and I was against it!"  Lance rambled, not averting his gaze from Keith, guilt suddenly hitting him with full force once again.

  
Keith tensed up remarkably at that, _what exactly had Lance done?_

  
"We kissed for five seconds, and you fainted right after we were done" Lance blurted out so quickly that it was almost unhearable

  
"Wait what?"

  
 Keith blinked rapidly a few times, surely he had misheard?

  
"I know that I'm making it sound weird like shit, but I swear that it was just a stupid dare- and we had your consent!"  Lance was practically panicking at this point, wildly flailing with his arms as he spoke and his heart looked like it was about to jump out of his chest.

"Lance"

  
"And it feels so creepy like, I knew you were half out of it but the others were pushing me and-" 

  
"Lance!"

  
"And you spoke normally and said that you didn't care if we did it or not so-"

  
"Lance listen to me!!!" Keith forcefully grabbed Lance's shoulders, making the other paladin yelp loudly in surprise

They stared at each other in silence, the only thing that could be heard was Lance's harsh breathing.

  
Finally, Keith took a deep breath and softened his grip on Lance's shoulders without fully letting go.

  
"You are overthinking this Lance, as you said- it was just a stupid bet. And while I agree that it was weird, we are both alive and breathing, right? So no harm is done" Keith said in a tired voice, never once averting his gaze from Lance's 

  
"Huh?"

  
"It's fine, really. It could've been way worse" Keith mumbled, breaking the eye contact and turning his head away, arms letting go of Lance's shoulders and falling down to his sides

  
Lance blinked rapidly a few times, was Keith blushing?

  
It was hard to see since Keith had his left side turned towards Lance, the pink burn markings that had appeared where the rashes had healed made it difficult to see.

  
"I have another question" Keith said in a low monotone voice

  
"Yeah? Go ahead" Lance replied, trying to not show how tense he'd gotten in a split second

  
Keith dug in his pocket, fishing up the scrambled note, unfolding it and presenting it to Lance.

  
"Why were you in my room when I was asleep?"  Keith asked

  
Lance stared at the note with a dumbfounded expression, somehow he had managed to repress the fact that he'd scribbled that note before leaving Keith last night; and now it was here, staring him in the face.

  
"I, uh.."

  
Lance nervously swept his foot back and forth on the ground, follow it intently with his gaze as he did so.

  
"You know I- I.."

  
"Come on" Keith pressed

  
"I was worried sick, okay?! I had to check up on you after you and Shiro left! And you weren't sleeping, you were unconscious!" cried out, tears forming in the corners of his eyes

Keith just stood frozen in the spot at Lance's sudden outburst. The way Lance's shoulders shook as he tried to get a hold of himself and not lose control- sparked something in the back of Keith's mind.

  
_Lance, standing by his bedside-crying.  A feeling, sadness, guilt, pity. It was all covered in a deep fog, but he remembered drifting between a dizzy awake state and unconsciousness._

  
_He remembered that he wanted to protect Lance from whatever it was that made him cry._

  
_ He remembered embracing Lance, almost losing himself in the feeling of being in his arms. They had held each other tight, afraid to let go._

  
Another memory was pushing in the back of his head, but no matter how much he tried to remember, it just wouldn't come to him.

  
"Lance I- I'm sorry" Keith finally said, biting his lower lip 

  
"Why? I'm the one who should say that it was my fault that you ended up that way. If I hadn't made you drink that tea, you wouldn't have been left defenseless and vulnerable like that" Lance managed to say, voice cracking and tears threatening to spill once again

  
"Why did you do it then?" Keith hesitantly asked

  
"Because you're so tense! I just wanted you to relax and just have a good time for once!"

  
Keith honestly didn't know why Lance's reply surprised him the way it did, it made so much sense that he would come up with such a thing.

  
"Sorry to break it to you, but we're in the middle of an intergalactic war, you always have to be on your watch" Keith deadpanned and crossed his arms

  
"Yes I know, but that doesn't mean that you can't live. We aren't machines, we have to be allowed to make memories, spend time together and relax" Lance exclaimed

  
Keith just shrugged at that, not sure of what he should say.

  
Lance just took a deep breath and wiped the tears that had fallen down his cheeks, shaking his head slightly.

  
"Seriously, everything is just so weird right now. Don't know what's up and down anymore" Lance sighed out with a weak smile, hugging his knees

  
"Yeah well.." Keith said, scooting over so that he sat beside Lance, their shoulders almost brushing. "It's okay to feel that way, so much has happened since we left earth and no one was really prepared for this, but it's not really like we have a choice" 

  
"Wow, you make it sound like it's some kind of punishment" Lance laughed dryly

  
"Even if it was, I'd still be happy." Keith replied

  
"Why?"

  
"Because, you guys are the closest thing I have ever had to a family, so I'm glad that I'm stuck out here with you" Keith said and gazed up at the sky, his voice not really conveying any emotions

  
Lance didn't respond to him for the longest time, he just glanced at the red paladin sitting beside him. The sun was slowly rising, casting a soft red glow that blended in with the purple-blue skies.

  
"Yeah, me too" Lance finally whispered out, so quietly that Keith almost didn't hear it

  
They sat like that in comfortable silence for an odd while, the mood wasn't awkward or strained; they simply didn't have anything to say to one another.  
Neither of them knew what time it was or how much of it had passed, they could only guess that it was morning since the sun had started to rise.

  
Suddenly, Keith felt a weight crashing into his shoulder; he whipped his head around and was met by the sight of a mop of brown hair.  
His eyes went wide and he quickly nudged Lance in the side with a weak ' _hey'  _in a half-hearted attempt to get him off himself non to violently, but Lance only groaned quietly at Keith's actions without moving an inch. 

  
A thousand thoughts and emotions swarmed through Keith's head, it was as if these instincts were divided into two camps that were screaming on different sides; on one hand, he just wanted to shove Lance off and get as far away from him as possible; while on the other hand, he just wanted to lean back into him and maybe even close his eyes and relax for a second. 

  
Without thinking, Keith's body seemingly made the decision for him, as he slowly leaned back against Lance, angling his body slightly so that he could rest his head against Lance's.  The position made the two paladin's fit perfectly without any traces of discomfort from either of them, and Keith mindlessly let his arm fall down and rest against Lance's hipbone, closing his eyes and sighing quietly.

  
There was still a voice in the back of his mind, screaming at him to let go and demanding to know what he was doing and why. But somehow, Keith decided to shut off that voice and just roll with the path that his body had decided for him.

  
He slowly buried his nose into Lance's hair and inhaled lightly, the scent was fresh and exotic, coconut? Keith smiled slightly- 'trust Lance to use that kind of products for his hair' he thought to himself, watching Lance with half-lidded eyes.

  
Keith was however brought back to his senses when an image flashed before his eyes- _a memory?_

  
_ It slowly revealed itself in the back of Keith's mind, it was in his own room, the lights were out but he could feel Lance's presence. It was overwhelming his senses and railing him in- and he felt like even though they were just inches apart, they were still too far away from each other._

  
_So he had done the only right thing: he had closed the distance between them and kissed Lance._

  
Keith's eyes shot wide open and the blood drained from his face when the realization dawned upon him. He had kissed Lance yesterday- and he had both wanted it and enjoyed it. **Twice.**

  
_An_ _d the scariest part?_ **He wouldn't mind doing it a third time.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have like, two prompts that I have to squeeze in somewhere, so we'll see if I write them before updating this fic or whatever, but I guess no one is expecting frequent updates anymore lol.  
> But, I'm off work for at least a week, I've got a brand new plaster on my foot (yaaaaaaaaaaaay... or not) cause' my foot is still broken even though the doctor took off the plaster a month ago and told me that I was healed.. ugh, if you are injured or sick, don't go to Sweden.
> 
> ANYHOW, I'm gonna conclude this fic in 2-3 chapters, this was just supposed to be a oneshot but.. well, that didn't go as planned.


	11. The talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Seriously, is your brain short-circuiting because you and Keith don't fight anymore?!" Pidge exclaimed
> 
>  
> 
> "Wait what?! W-what do you mean?!" Lance shrieked, a small blush creeping up from his neck to ears
> 
>  
> 
> Pidge sighed and pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose, rubbing her temples in an attempt to calm herself. 
> 
>  
> 
> "In case you didn't notice Einstein, anyone with decent eyesight could notice that you have a thing for him" she replied matter of factly

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!  
> Finally managed to update, seriously- even though I've been practically bedridden for almost 3 weeks, I still haven't managed to write much, shame on me.  
> Oh well, it's time for THE talk.

**Keith needed to talk to Shiro. Right now.**

  
There were only two things keeping him from running directly to wherever their leader might be:  
_One_ , since it was probably very early in the morning, the possibility of him walking in on Shiro sleeping or getting dressed was very high.  
_Two_ , Lance was still sleeping against his shoulder; and moving would surely wake him up, making things unbearably awkward.

Keith chewed on the tip of his thumb, nothing made sense to him right now.

He wasn't stupid, he knew that the way he felt about Lance was something other than what he felt for the rest of the crew. And that's what he needed Shiro for.  
The way he felt about Shiro was different as well, it was more of a brotherly relationship than anything else. He loved Shiro a lot and he was the one that he was the most comfortable out of everyone at the castle.

  
He had warmed up to everyone else as well, and he had no problems referring to them as his friends, even though he was still generally reserved against everyone.  
What stood out to himself about his situation with Lance was the underlying desire to touch him all the time, sure it was no big advances or anything, just small brushes with his fingers here and there, but the fact that he just couldn't keep his hands to himself was.. _strange._

  
He shook his head, he definitely needed to ask Shiro for advice. He was the only one that knew Keith better than himself.  
Keith slowly moved away from Lance while keeping one hand pressed against the other paladin's shoulder so that he didn't fall over. He carefully maneuvered him so that he was now leaning against a pillar instead.

  
He hesitantly let go of Lance and stood up, casting a long glance at the sleeping paladin before he turned around and walked away, exiting the roof.  
Keith walked through the quiet corridors of the castle, the only sound was the soft echoing of his own footsteps.  
Shiro's room was quite close to the roof, so it didn't take Keith long to walk the distance.

  
As he stood outside Shiro's door, he hesitated. Even though Shiro had told him multiple times that, if he ever wanted to talk about anything no matter the topic or time of the day, he could always ask Shiro for advice- still it felt weird to seek him out this early in the morning, to talk about Lance.  
Keith shook his head to himself _. Yeah, definitely fucking weird, to be blunt._  
Well, he was here now, so there was no need to drag things out.

  
He knocked on the door softly- and almost immediately he heard a muffled 'yes?' from the inside, startling Keith slightly.

  
"It's me, sorry to disturb you this early but.. can I come in?" Keith said, trying to speak clearly, but his voice failed him at the last sentence

  
In a flash, the door flung open and Shiro himself stood there, his face housing many emotions.

  
"Keith- it's so good to see you up and about! How are you feeling?" Shiro asked, clearly both relieved and concerned

  
"I'm fine, I'm sorry if I made you guys worried. I heard that you carried me back to my room last night, thank you" Keith said, awkwardly rubbing his underarm.

  
"Don't mention it! I'm just glad that you are okay" Shiro smiled at the younger paladin

  
Keith's lips quirked upward slightly in response, but the smile didn't quite meet his eyes.

  
Shiro watched him silently before stepping aside, motioning for Keith to come in, wich the younger paladin did with a small 'thanks'.

  
Shiro sat down on the bed while Keith remained in the doorway, nervously fidgeting with the hem of his shirt.

  
"Keith, come here and talk to me" Shiro said, patting the space beside him as an invitation

  
Keith let out a troubled sigh before he walked over to the bed and sat down beside Shiro, who patiently waited for Keith to speak.

  
"I- .. I'm just very confused about something right now and I might need some brotherly advice" Keith hesitantly said

  
"It's Lance, isn't it?" Shiro asked

  
Keith looked up at Shiro, eyes wide and confused. _How did he know..?_

  
"Yeah.." Keith replied softly

  
"Well, it's easy for me to tell, since I've been in the same position as you.. do you remember Adam?" Shiro began

"Yeah?" Keith replied

"Well, we..."

* * *

  
_Lance woke up about 30 minutes after Keith had left._

  
He slowly blinked his eyes awake, adjusting to the pale morning light.  
The first thing he noticed, obviously- was that Keith was gone. He silently wondered to himself if Keith had even been there in the first place, but the memory of their previous conversation was still painfully fresh in the back of his mind. He was an idiot.

  
He had totally lost all control and everything had just been a mess. Keith should be the one freaking out, not him.  
Lance groaned and buried his face in his hands, slowly dragging them up and down.  
He needed help with this, as much as he hated to admit it.

He sighed as he stood up and headed for the exit, _would Pidge and Hunk even be awake by now?_  
As if he was going on autopilot, he wandered the corridors of the castle and eventually found himself standing in the kitchen area, met by the sight of Hunk and Pidge hovering over a bench, seemingly very concentrated on.. something.

  
Lance slowly approached the two, lifting his chin slightly in an attempt to see over their heads.  
He raised his eyebrow, why was one of the mice on the bench and what were they doing with it?

  
"Hey guys, what are you up to?" Lance said casually, placing one hand on each of their shoulders.

  
Both Hunk and Pidge screamed loudly and whipped around in a millisecond, startling both Lance and the mouse in the process, the latter escaping the bench in a flash.

  
"Oh my gosh, I thought I was gonna die!" Hunk exclaimed

  
Pidge turned her head towards the now-empty bench, groaning loudly before turning to Lance again with a glare.

  
"Seriously Lance! You can't just sneak up on people like that!" She hissed and swatted her hand in the air as if she wanted to chase him away

  
"Aww come on! Just wanted to mess with you a little" Lance replied sweetly

  
"Yeah yeah, very funny- tell that to my family when you announce my death to them please" Hunk half-joked

  
_They all went silent at that, the word  ' **family'** made them all feel uneasy all of a sudden. _

  
After almost a minute in awkward silence, Lance cleared his throat and glanced at them both.

  
"So, what were you guys doing with that mouse?"

"It's just helping us test herbs and stuff from this planet, to see if they're edible or not" Pidge shrugged

  
"Wow, how noble of you to sacrifice the mice like that, what if it gets poisoned?" Lance asked, looking mildly horrified.

  
"Lance, I swear to god-" Pidge pinched the bridge of her nose as she spoke, internally debating with herself whether or not she should waste her time discussing this with Lance at all

  
"Okaaay guys let's just stop it right there" Hunk said and put both his hands up in front of his fellow paladins, causing them both to cross their arms and frown, turning away from each other slightly

  
" The mice are like- super good at sniffing out the bad stuff, heck- even I don't stand a chance against them so, I fully trust in their capacity" He solemnly concluded

  
"If somebody dies, I'm blaming you both" Lance said

  
"Eat shit Mclain, you'd be the first one to go down" Pidge scowled

  
"Not if I step on you first Midget!"

  
Hunk groaned in the background, not even bothering to break them apart.

  
"Seriously, is your brain short-circuiting because you and Keith don't fight anymore?!" Pidge exclaimed

  
"Wait what?! W-what do you mean?!" Lance shrieked, a small blush creeping up from his neck to ears

 

Pidge sighed and pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose, rubbing her temples in an attempt to calm herself. 

  
"In case you didn't notice Einstein, anyone with decent eyesight could notice that you have a thing for him" she replied matter of factly

  
Lance went dead silent at that, barley breathing as if his brain was using his entire being to process what Pidge had just said.

  
_Him and Keith?_

  
**...**  
**...**  
**...**

  
**WHAT**

  
"I- no! Nononono, absolutely not! Where did you even get that idea?! No. just- NO!!!" Lance was practically yelling at this point, flailing his arms wildly and shaking his head.

  
Hunk and Pidge glanced at each other before turning their attention to Lance again, the paladin looked as if he was going to explode any second now.

  
"Lance, buddy" Hunk said, slowly walking up behind Lance, who was fidgeting uncontrollably with the sleeve of his shirt and muttering to himself.

  
"We can't tell you what to do or don't do, but just be true to yourself, okay?"

  
Lance froze at that, looking up at Hunk with big eyes and mouth slightly agape. He didn't find any words to respond with.

  
"It's obvious that this is bothering you, and if it helps any- I think Keith might have a thing for you too, oddly enough," Pidge said with a crooked smile, her delivery coming out a bit awkward

  
"Yeah, I'm with Pidge on this one- that guy is pretty hard to read but it's easy to see that he acts differently around you and Shiro" Hunk flicked in with a small shrug

  
"I- ugh, why is everything so complicated?!" Lance finally moaned out, burying his face in his hands

  
"Because you are making it complicated by being in denial" Pidge stated

  
"I've said this before and I'm gonna say it again: I think that you are the problem, Lance. Just open up, I'm not saying that you and Keith are gonna get married and live together forever- but whatever this is, your just shooting yourself in the foot by walking around and pretending that it's nothing" Hunk said, carefully placing a hand on Lance's shoulder and rubbing his thumb over it in a comforting gesture

  
Lance just sighed and shook his head, hanging it down miserably.

  
"I.. I really don't know what's going on" He whimpered

  
"Okay so, I'm gonna try to ask this in a non-creepy and weird way but like, what do you think your sexual orientation is, Lance?" Hunk carefully asked

  
Lance visibly tensed at that, confusion imminent on his face as he tapped his chin lightly in thought.  
"I uh, I like girls- obviously? But.. love is love, I guess?" Lance finally replied, lowering his head slightly and biting his lip.

  
Hunk and Pidge shared a pitiful look, they felt really bad for their friend and it was almost painful to see him like this, confused and unhappy.

  
"Seriously, I just don't get it. I know that I like ladies- heck, I might even have a thing for Allura- but I.. I-I just... want to be with Keith... and it's just so weird and scary" Lance said weakly, breath hitching slightly and the last part came out like a quiet whimper.

  
Before he knew it, tears started to fall down his cheeks. _He just couldn't stop it._

"Shit, not again" Lance whimpered weakly 

  
He put his left arm up and dug his face into the sleeve if his shirt, hiccuping quietly as he dried the tears that just continued to fall.

  
"Oh Lance- .." Hunk clenched the fabric of his shirt right over his aching heart rather dramatically, tears starting to well up in his eyes as well. There was nothing that hurt him more than seeing his friend like this.  
"Can I comfort you? Please tell me I- I just want to hug it all better"

  
"Ha-?"

  
"Jesus Hunk, is it you or Lance that's feeling miserable?" Pidge rolled her eyes, but her voice didn't hold any force at all. She was obviously bothered as well, evident by the way she averted her gaze and fidgeted with the hem of her shirt.

  
"Well, I feel like crap now obviously! I don't want to see my pal like this!" Hunk exclaimed while railing Lance into a tight bear hug after Lance had squeaked out a small _'kay'_  
Hunk nudged his chin against the top of Lance's head a few times as if to comfort himself, before reaching out and grabbing Pidge by the wrist- startling the smaller paladin who shrieked loudly.

  
"Let go Hunk!"

  
"Aint happening" Hunk deadpanned and dragged Pidge into the hug as well, under wild protests from both Pidge and Lance

  
"Hunk- I-I'm suffocating down here!" Lance squeaked out from somewhere tightly enclosed in Hunk's arms

  
"Oh sorry- got carried away" Hunk said with a nervous laugh, softening his grip enough to allow Lance to pop his head up with a loud cough.

  
"I could have died!!!" Lance wheezed, followed by a few small coughs

  
"Nah, pretty sure you'd just lose consciousness" Hunk teased, squeezing his friends tightly once more

  
Both Pidge and Lance groaned at that but shared a wry smile right after.

  
They sat like that for another minute until Hunk let go of them, Pidge immediately escaped to the nearest chair and sat down, readjusting her glasses.

  
"So, what's the plan?" She casually asked

  
Lance lifted his head and shot her a confused glance.

  
"You know, with Keith?" She clarified, motioning with her hand for Lance to respond

  
"Oh- uh... I don't know? Hide under a rock and avoid him for the rest of my life?" Lance said awkwardly

  
"Absolutely not" Hunk deadpanned

  
"Did you guys even talk about what happened yesterday?" Pidge asked

  
"I tried! But he was still pretty fuzzy, so he hardly remembered anything! Do you guys realize how awkward it was to tell him?!" Lance exclaimed as he lashed out both of his arms in frustration

  
"Man, I would've loved to see that" Pidge snickered

  
Lance shot her a glare and hissed _'not helping_ ' to the younger paladin.

  
"So, what kind of reaction did you get? Did he freak out or did he get mad at you?" Hunk flicked in

  
"No, he.. I guess he was cool about it? I mean, I freaked out. Totally- but Keith was just... indifferent and sensible?"

  
"That's great! Right?" Hunk said in a cheerful tone and nudged Lance in the side

 

".....I guess?" Lance replied hesitantly

  
"You **guess?** " Pidge echoed

  
"Yeah? He might still hate me you know"

  
Both Pidge and Hunk groaned loudly in unison and Hunk forcefully slapped his hand in his face, shaking his head while muttering _'it's hopeless'_ to himself.

  
"Jesus christ Lance, just talk to him! You don't have to confess or anything but just- talk for god's sake!" Pidge exclaimed as she scooted over closer to Lance, straining her brown eyes into his

  
"Buddy, you know that we love you like a brother, but you are seriously one of the stupidest persons alive- without competition" Hunk deadpanned, face still buried in his hands

  
"Well, what should I do then?!" Lance huffed with a glare, eye twitching slightly

  
" **TALK TO HIM!!!** " Pidge and Hunk shouted simultaneously

  
"You know what? Fine! I'll do it, but somebody's gonna have to crush me with their lion afterward!" Lance said and spun on his heel, lifting his hands in the air in defeat.

  
"Even if things go well?" Pidge called after him

  
Lance stopped in his tracks and turned slightly, shooting his friends an insecure glance. He opened his mouth to say something but was quickly cut off by Hunk.

  
"Don't stop, just go! You got this buddy, we love you, bye!" He shouted and swatted his hand, shooing Lance away from them

  
_And thus, Lance was left alone with the important mission to talk things out with Keith, under the threat of his best friends._

* * *

  
"Thank you, Keith, for opening up to me about this. I'm proud of you" Shiro said, smiling fondly at the younger paladin

"I- uh... thanks, Shiro, really. For listening to me" Keith replied shyly, scratching his cheek lightly

  
"You know, you have improved so much as a person lately, I think that you are finally starting to find the balance between being confident and at the same time humble enough to let others in" Shiro said and squeezed Keith's shoulder

  
Keith looked up at his leader in surprise, a small blush crept upon his face and he didn't know how to verbally respond to it, the only thing he could muster was a simple 'thanks'.

  
"Well, I think you know what do to. Off with you" Shiro laughed and playfully pushed Keith in the back.

  
Keith yelped a little in surprise but immediately fell into a shy laugh aswell after he found his footing.

  
It was a little bizarre, almost as if Shiro was a mother bird, pushing his baby out of the nest to test his wings.

  
Except that wasn't really the case, Keith had proven on multiple occasions that he was fully capable of standing on his own two feet, close to equal ground with Shiro.  
But when it came to feelings and romance, he was still in great need of his mentor's advice.

  
"See you" Keith said with a smile, waving slightly as he exited Shiro's room.

* * *

 

Keith headed straight to his own room, even though his conversation with Shiro had shone a light on many of his question marks, he still needed to think things through alone.

  
He laid outstretched on his bed with his arms neatly tucked behind his head and stared up the ceiling, when suddenly the sirens echoed through the castle, quickly followed by Allura's alarmed voice.

  
**_"Paladins! Incoming Galra cruiser, get in your lions immediately!!!"_**

  
In the blink of an eye, Keith was up and ran towards the hangars. _His personal problems would simply have to wait._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yep, I actually ended this with a cliffhanger- now that's a first.  
> I was originally going to end this chapter in an entirely different way, but then I got this idea instead.  
> Anyhow, I'm actually kinda pleased with the dynamics in this chapter like, it just feels realistic that they would act like this and that Keith would consult Shiro for this type of problem. Yep, gonna give myself a pat on the shoulder for that one.  
> Also, I seriously wanted to strangle Lance while writing this, lol- I feel bad for Hunk and Pidge.  
> Oh well, I'm gonna try to update a little quicker next time!


	12. Fight for your life

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Hunk, watch out!" Keith yelled, followed by a loud crash that replaced Keith's voice with a disarranged sough
> 
> "Keith?!"
> 
> "What happened?!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: This chapter contains a lot of blood.
> 
> SERIOUSLY THOUGH, HOW DID THIS HAPPEN??? My own writing confuses me, but I'm actually quite pleased with how this chapter turned out anyway. Somebody should lock me up for schizophrenic writing, lol. Anyways, enjoy my first time writing a fight thingy.

_When Lance flew Blue out of the castle, he was almost hit by a purple beam of light._

  
" _Shit!_ " He hissed as he harshly ducked the beam, only centimeters from being grazed by it.  
  
" _Lance, good- you're here! Listen, they're firing like crazy at all directions, we can't get close to each other, so we might not be able to form Voltron. We need to take down that canon as soon as possible_ " Shiro informed on the intercom  
  
" _I'm going directly at it now, just gotta find an opening_ " Keith said, teeth clenched in concentration  
  
" _Be careful Keith, we know that you and Red are to most agile, but it's a deadly weapon we're dealing with_ " Shiro said  
  
" _We're gonna try to fire some shots as well, it might give you a gap to finish things_ " Allura's voice echoed as the castle's canon light up  
  
Lance quickly pulled the lever down, going at full speed towards the Galra canon. He used Blue's tail laser to fire at the small canons that were pestering him as he went, noting how well armed the ship seemed to be. It sure made up for the lack of the small battleships that usually accompanied the larger ones.  
Suddenly, something rammed into Blue from the side wich violently flung it out of course.  
  
" _Crap- Lance, are you okay?!"_ Pidge yelled  
  
_"Pidge, what happened?_!" Allura desperately said  
  
" _I think it was one of the small battleships, thought I had gotten them all- but apparently not. They surprised me and I just hit Lance. But both lions seem to be unharmed_ " Pidge informed hurriedly as she dodged another beam from the Galra ship  
  
" _If they could just stop shooting for like- five seconds it'd be great_!" Hunk yelled as he rammed Yellow directly onto a canon on the battleship, causing it to explode  
  
" _I'm up again, I'm going for the canon aswell_ " Lance said and for the second time flew Blue towards the ship's core  
  
_"Just don't get to close Lance, Blue is better with a little distance"_ Shiro instructed as he flew on the opposite side, aiming for the engines  
  
" _Got it_ " Lance simply replied, scanning his surroundings. He could clearly see Green just a few meters from himself, four small battleships, Red and Yellow were distantly visible from underneath the big ship. The explosions echoing from the other side suggested that Shiro was there.  
  
Lance decided that covering Keith and Hunk from a closer distance would be his best option and taking care of the smaller battleships would be his first priority.  
He pulled the levers and instantly took out two of the smaller ships in one blast.  
  
" _Thanks Lance_!" Hunk cheered  
  
" _Hunk, watch out!_ " Keith yelled, followed by a loud crash that replaced Keith's voice with a disarranged sough  
  
" _Keith?_!"  
  
" _What happened?!_ "  
  
Lance stared in horror as he saw Red get pierced by a white light that cut right through the lion's body. Yellow was directly underneath but its thick armor effectively discharged the beam  
Red sparked with electricity, seemingly short-circuiting as the lions' eyes flickered.  
  
" _Hunk, you catch red! I'm getting the canon now!_ " Shiro screamed and activated the Black lions' jaw blade, slicing through the canon in one swift motion, the force of the attack cleaving the entire ship in half and causing it to explode.  
  
" _Well done Shiro!_ " Allura exclaimed in relief  
  
" _I'm coming back to the castle now, I've got Red but Keith's communication is still off_ " Hunk informed, clearly stressed out  
  
" _We're right behind you Hunk"_ Pidge said as she flew up from behind with Green, Black and Blue weren't far behind.

* * *

  
  
Once landed, Hunk carefully slipped Red off Yellow's back. The lion weakly sparked to life again but the eyes remained dull and he hung his head low.  
The last three lions landed shortly after, their mouth's popping open and their paladins rushed out to meet with Hunk, Allura and Coran outside Red.  
Red easily lowered his head and opened up to them all, recognizing them as being related to his paladin.  
  
" **Keith!!!** "  
  
They all yelled his name as they rushed into the red lion, a troubled groan could be heard from the cockpit.  
  
Keith was limp in his seat with his head tilted to the side and his eyes were closed, his armor was cracked in a neat diagonal from his left shoulder to his right hip with blood streaming through the cracks, suggesting that the beam had caused a deep gash underneath.  
They all stared in horror at the unmoving paladin, except for Lance and Shiro who had quickly ran over to his side, taking off his helmet and shaking him harshly.  
  
"Keith?! Keith, answer me!" Lance cried out, not daring to shake him the way Shiro did  
  
"Godness, is he breathing?" Allura asked, her hand clamped over her mouth  
  
"Yes, but he's losing more blood by the minute, we have to get him to a healing pod, now" Shiro said through gritted teeth, eyes fixed on the blood flowing through the broken armor  
  
"Well, what are we waiting for?!" Lance exclaimed and reached out to the red paladin with shaking arms. Shiro just nodded at Lance and they both carefully maneuvered Keith out of the seat, slumping his arms over their shoulders as they steadied him up.  
  
"I will run head and prepare the pod for him, Pidge, could you come with me?" Coran said and turned to her  
  
"Right behind you, let's go. See you guys in a bit" Pidge said with a firm nod before she followed Coran out of the lion

* * *

  
  
_The walk from Red to the healing pods was a blur for Lance. He remembered carefully walking out of Red, smiling weakly at the lion. Lance wasn't sure if he'd hallucinated, but he thought that he might have heard a soft purr coming from Red._  
  
_Next thing he knew, they were in the medical wing_.  
Pidge and Coran had already prepared a stash of swabs, papers and other additional supplies.  
  
"We will have to remove the armor before we can get him into the pod, we don't know if the armor is compressing the blood flow or not, so we stacked up items to quickly compress if needed" Coran explained  
  
"Good thinking, you two, we'll have to work quickly now-Lance, are you ready?" Shiro said in a strained voice  
  
Lance just nodded silently, keeping his full concentration on getting Keith safely to the ground.  
  
"I want you to hold him and make sure that he stays in sitting position, I will start to remove the armor and Pidge, I want you to be ready with the compress as soon as its off, okay?" Shiro instructed and let his gaze flicker between the two addressed paladins  
  
"Got it" Pidge and Lance said in unison as they took their positions.  
  
As soon as Shiro managed to remove the chest plate, a thick stream of blood pulsed through the gash that was hidden underneath.  
Pidge quickly pushed the swabs against the wound but the blood quickly soaked through and dyed it red.  
  
"Shit" Pidge gritted her teeth and tossed the swabs to the side and immediately replaced them with new ones  
  
"I don't think this is gonna work- can't we just get him in the pod?!" Lance shrieked, his voice high pitched in panic  
  
"We can't just toss him in there when he's bleeding like this, it doesn't work like that!" Shiro replied, doing his best to not lose control of the situation as worked on ridding Keith of his armor

 _The time seemed to go in slow motion and Lance quickly lost count on how many times Pidge had changed the swabs._  
_Normally, getting out of the paladin armor took a minute at most. Why did it take so long now?_  
After what felt like forever, Keith was finally stripped down to the dark gray undersuit and the bleeding had been somewhat stabilized, evident by the fact that Pidge had managed to compress tightly with the same set of swabs for a minute or so.

"Okay, I think we can move him to the pod now, are you ready Lance?" Shiro said as he carefully swung Keith arm over his shoulder again  
  
"Yeah, let's do this" Lance replied in a monotone voice as he mimicked Shiro's movements in an almost robot-like fashion  
  
They successfully managed to get Keith inside the pod, Coran quickly closed it and started it up as soon as Keith was settled inside.  
A long, heavy silence stretched out in the room, the only thing that could be heard was the soft buzzing from the pod.  
  
"He is going to be okay...right?" Hunk finally broke the silence, glancing at Coran without turning his head  
  
"Yes, it seems like even though the armor broke it still managed to spare him from the worst damage. His stats are thankfully much better than I expected" Coran replied without looking up from the screen that displayed the healing process, studying it intently  
  
"Man, that's so good to hear" Hunk sighed out in relief and looked up at the paladin in the pod, instantly feeling a little more at ease.  
  
"Still, I'm a bit concerned at how they managed to cut right through the lion enough to hurt its paladin like that, since the armor is as close to indestructible as it can be" Coran said, thoughtfully twirling his mustache  
  
"Yeah, we'll definitely have to chew on that one. Speaking of the red lion, I think we'll have to take a look at him as well since he took quite the beating" Pidge said out loud, her eyes darting over all her fellow crewmembers  
  
"I'm going with you, I need something other to think about right now that's not the near-death experience of my comrade" Hunk instantly replied, raking his hands over his shoulder and shuddering visibly  
  
"How much time do you think he's gonna need in there?" Shiro asked, his attention turned to Coran  
  
"I'm not sure, I'd like to say a day or so- but we've seen before that Keith is quite the fast healer on his own, so it might be less" Coran replied hesitantly, his eyes flickering from the screen to the pod  
  
Shiro nodded at that, seemingly satisfied with the answer.

Pidge, Hunk, Allura, and Coran left shortly after with the instructions to contact Coran if anything was unclear or off. Leaving only Lance and Shiro left by Keith's side.

  
Lance had hardly spoken a word since Keith had gotten into the healing pod, his expression kept hollow and unreadable the whole time.  
Shiro carefully placed his hand on Lance's shoulder, making the younger paladin wince and turn his head around, weak eyes meeting his leaders' concerned gaze.  
  
"Are you okay, Lance?" Shiro asked carefully  
  
"Yeah I- it's fine, really, just trying to process what just happened " He shakily replied  
  
"It's only natural to feel like that, I do too. But he's going to be okay" Shiro replied softly  
  
Lance nodded and gave Shiro a weak smile, he knew that what Shiro said was true, but the feeling of Keith in his arms with a wound that could potentially have bleed him dry, not even an hour ago haunted him and was hard to just shake off like that.  
  
"You did a good job, Lance, even though you were clearly upset you still managed to keep focus on the task at hand. I'm proud of you" Shiro said, gently nudging his shoulder as if to shake off the tension of the younger paladin  
  
"Thank you Shiro" Lance managed to muster up a shy smile at their leader, normally- getting acknowledged like that by Shiro would have sent Lance's ego to the sky, making him absolutely unbearable- but now he simply wasn't previous to their leaders praise.

* * *

 

_The hours ticked by slowly, Lance and Shiro remained sitting in front of the pod mostly in silence. They exchanged a few words now and then but Shiro realized rather quickly that Lance needed some space to sort out his thoughts._

  
Pidge and Hunk checked in eventually with some food goo and announced that the red lion was fit for fight again and that Coran had occupied himself with fixing Keith's armor.

 _They sat together and Chit-chatted for an hour or so, Lance was constantly spacing out and didn't follow the conversation at all._  
  
"Well, it's getting late. We should probably take shifts on watching him tonight" Shiro said and turned his head towards Keith  
  
"Sounds like a plan, one of us could start- since you two have been here the whole time since we got here" Pidge replied as her gaze flickered from Hunk and then over at Shiro and Lance respectively  
  
"I'm not going anywhere" Lance finally spoke, voice hollow and weak  
  
"Buddy, you look like crap- you should really go and get some rest" Hunk hesitantly said  
  
Lance just shook his head at that and turned away from his team, showing clearly by his body language that he was not going to discuss this any further.  
The other three paladins shared a knowing glance, but ultimately nodded at each other and stood up.  
  
"We'll check in on you in a few hours, in case you change your mind" Hunk said and gave Lance a soft pat on the shoulder  
  
"Let us know if anything happens or if you need help" Shiro said hesitantly, not entirely pleased with leaving Lance like this  
  
"Got it, thanks guys" Lance replied in a monotone voice, not even bothering to look at them.

* * *

  
_A few more hours passed without anything happening, Lance was sitting down a few meters from the healing pod, having one leg bent and he leaned his upper body against it. He blinked a few times- but never let Keith out of his sight._  
  
A soft buzzing sound caught Lance's attention, as he looked up he saw that the protective shell of the healing pod had started to glow.  
He immediately jumped to his feet and ran over to it, just in time as the pod evaporated and released the paladin.  
  
Keith's eyes fluttered open and he hazily scanned his surroundings, his gaze eventually stopping at the paladin standing not even one meter from him.  
  
"Lan..ce?" Keith breathlessly spoke, his dizzy gaze lingering on Lance's features.  
  
"Keith..." Lance whispered with a trembling voice

Keith took a staggering step out of the healing pod, but his legs instantly gave in and he fell headlong straight into Lance's arms.  
Lance easily caught Keith, pushing one of his legs slightly backward to brace himself and keep them both steady.  
Keith slowly raised his head, muttering a small ' _thanks'_ followed by a slight hiss.  
  
"How are you feeling?"  
  
"It stings a little, I've been worse" Keith replied tiredly but still managed to muster up some confidence as he spoke  
  
"Dude, you could've seriously died from that wound!" Lance replied in a slightly accusing tone  
  
"Yeah, well I- ... " Keith held back his initial sassy response, there was no need for him to provoke Lance here and now "Thanks to you guys, I didn't. Really, I owe you all" he finished in a soft tone, only now raising his head fully and looking Lance in the eyes  
  
Lance looked completely worn out as if he'd been awake for days. His eyes were dulled and slightly bloodshot- and even though he watched Keith with a relieved and fond expression, his smile was weak.  
Keith felt very guilty all of a sudden, it was clear as a day that Lance had been beyond worried for him.

"Lance, I- ..." Keith began but was quickly cut off as he was pulled into a tight embrace, he felt Lance's breath in his neck.  
  
Keith gasped both in surprise and by the pressure the contact added to his wound.  
  
He hesitantly wrapped his arms around Lance's waist and leaned his head onto his shoulder. It felt comforting, warm and... _just right_.  
  
"I thought that I was gonna lose you, Keith..." Lance mumbled, his lower lip trembling against Keith's hair  
  
"...But you saved me Lance, and that's all that matters" Keith quietly replied, doing his best to sound reassuring even though the reality was slowly catching up to him. **He could have died.**  
  
Lance took a shuddering breath and nodded quietly, doing his best to keep himself together.  
  
"Lance..." Keith let out a soft sigh and nuzzled his face into Lance's shoulder "You can cry- it's okay"  
  
_Lance's breath hitched at that- how did Keith do that? He felt as if he was an open book to the other paladin._  
Lance let out a weak chuckle and buried his face in Keith's stupid mullet.  
  
"'Kay' "  
_And as if somebody had pulled the plug, all of Lance's suppressed feelings came crashing down over him. But he was finally okay. They were okay._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so- I feel so bad for my boys right now like, I had the setting where everything would turn out just lovey-dovey, but then I remembered that I don't just do lovey-dovey. So instead, I almost killed Keith.  
> Also, I feel like I'm just tormenting the poor guy, he's been subjected to a lot of fysical shit during this story. But on the other hand, I've probably scared Lance mentally for life so, there is that.
> 
> Also (again) I know that there are those special healing pod suits that they use in the show, I don't know if they serve any real purpose or not, but I just couldn't find a way to include them. Like, Keith was almost bleeding to death so I couldn't write it like "Hey just wait a tic while we get him out of bodysuit 1 and then into bodysuit 2" so yeah, I know the error of my ways. 
> 
> Anyhow, writing this was a different experience and I hope that you guys like my first attempt at a random space fight and chaos wound treatment. Gonna provide shit tons of awkward fluff in the next one to make up for this train wreck. See ya!


	13. The night is all about you

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Hey- Lance?" Keith said, lightly fidgeting with Lance's shirt 
> 
> "Ah, shit- yeah?" Lance awkwardly replied as he snapped out of his dream-like haze
> 
> Keith bit his lip and averted his gaze for a split second and took a shuddering breath before he locked his gaze with Lance's and inched closer "Lance, do you-"
> 
> "Yeah?" Lance replied breathlessly, mindlessly tilting his head slightly in preparation for what was about to come.  
> Lance could almost feel Keith's lips ghosting over his own as he spoke and he was almost aching to just close that minimal distance between them-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm alive! And I managed to produce, again.  
> I hope that you guys will enjoy this chapter, gayness steadily increasing, lol.

  
_Being in Lance's arms felt just right._

It was ironical, how he could go from being so annoyed by Lance that he was itching to throw him off the ship and never see him again, to standing like this, melting into the embrace and relishing the feeling as if it was his life force.  
  
Lance had stopped crying after a while, his breathing slowly steding into something more even and calm- only breaking now and then with a small hitch or leftover sob.  
None of them really how long they both stood like that, Keith's hands tightly clutched the fabric of Lance's shirt over his back and he had buried his head Lance's shoulder, Lance had his arms thrown around Keith's neck and he was resting his head on his shoulder, nuzzling slightly into Keith's dark hair.  
It was comforting, safe and warm- not that any of them would ever admit it out loud.  
  
"Lance?..." Keith eventually broke the silence, his voice muffled since he didn't bother to look up from his spot on Lance's shoulder  
  
Lance shivered slightly at the way Keith's hot breath found its way through his shirt as he spoke his name. The sensation was a bit unfamiliar but welcome.  
  
"Yeah?" Lance replied with a soft exhale  
  
"..." Keith remained silent as if he'd regretted what he had been about to say.  
  
His arms dropped slightly and the grip on Lance's shirt loosened for a split second- but his hands quickly found their way back, as if he was afraid to let go just yet.  
"Keith...Are you okay?" Lance carefully asked, lifting his head and angling it slightly in an attempt to make eye contact with him  
  
Keith nodded slowly and mumbled a soft 'Yeah' before he slowly raised his head to hesitantly look up at Lance from his spot on said paladin's shoulder. The sight alone was enough to turn Lance's legs into jelly in the flash of a second.  
  
If not only for the fact that their faces suddenly were mere inches apart, but the shy expression on Keith's face complete with a pale blush on his features was almost entrancing, and Lance thought to himself, not for the first time, how stunning Keith actually was.  
  
While Lance's body and consciousness were clearly in some kind of heavenly state, the rational part of his brain way screaming and desperately trying to snap him out of it. Everything about the situation was just weird and crazy on so many levels. After all, the person standing before him, wrapped in his arms, was Keith- the person he's proclaimed so many times was his rival, the one that could make him snap in a second and always bested him without even trying- and who he secretly admired and respected more than he could ever admit to anyone- the one that he deep down knew that he, even though he constantly repressed the thought- quite possibly had "a thing" for.  
  
And while he wouldn't allow himself to call it 'love' or even something remotely close to it, he knew that this is where he wanted to be. Where he wanted Keith to be. In each other's arms.  
  
"Hey- Lance?" Keith said, lightly fidgeting with Lance's shirt  
  
"Ah, shit- yeah?" Lance awkwardly replied as he snapped out of his dream-like haze  
  
Keith bit his lip and averted his gaze for a split second and took a shuddering breath before he locked his gaze with Lance's and inched closer "Lance, do you-"  
  
"Yeah?" Lance replied breathlessly, mindlessly tilting his head slightly in preparation for what was about to come.  
Lance could almost feel Keith's lips ghosting over his own as he spoke and he was almost aching to just close that minimal distance between them-

When suddenly Pidge, Hunk, and Shiro came storming into the room, practically tripping over each other and yelling Keith's name, effectively startling both Keith and Lance and making the two paladins break apart their embrace instantly.  
  
Hunk got to them first and swiftly scooped Keith up in a tight hug, spinning him half a turn.  
  
"Jesus christ Hunk!" Pidge shrieked with a horrified look on her face, her eyes trailing Keith as he was spun gracefully in the air  
  
"Hunk, be careful with him!" Shiro said as he came up beside them, putting a hand on Hunk's shoulder  
  
"Oh yikes- yeah, sorry Keith" Hunk apologized as he gently put Keith down, slightly flustered  
  
"It's okay" Keith replied with an awkward look on his face  
  
"So, how are you feeling? And how is the wound?" Shiro asked with a concerned smile  
  
"I'm fine, I think? It just stings a little, that's all" Keith said and put his hand on his shoulder where the gash started, tracing it lightly over his chest and down to his hipbone. It was a miracle that he had managed to survive with all his internals intact.

'  
The rest of the paladins followed Keith's hand with their eyes, realization dawned upon them just how big of an injury it actually had been.  
  
"So, think you can go and get some rest now, Lance?" Pidge said as she nudged him in the side with a grin, startling the paladin awake from his thoughts  
  
"What- I'm feeling peachy!" Lance replied and attempted to flash one of his confident signature smiles, but failing miserably. It came out off and forced and it looked like he was trying to hide the fact that he had a corpse in his garden.  
  
They all turned to look at Lance with disapproving looks, everyone showing him in their own way that they didn't believe him in the slightest.  
  
"Lance, you did a great job tonight, but as your leader, it's my responsibility to make sure that you take care of yourself" Shiro told him gently  
  
"Really, I-"  
  
"It's an order, go to bed!" Shiro deadpanned, his expression changed into a stern one in just a millisecond, terrifying the entire group  
  
Lance gulped audibly before he put both his hands up in defeat  
.  
"Okay- okay, you win. I need to get my beauty sleep after all so, adiõs" Lance confidently said as he spun around and headed for the exit, waving his hand swiftly at the group.  
Hunk cringed visibly and Pidge made a gagging noise, Shiro and Keith just shared a glance with each other before turning their attention back to Lance, just as he walked out of the door.  
  
"What was that about?" Keith asked out loud to no one in particular  
  
"That idiot refused to take shifts with us to keep an eye on you, even though he was all worn out" Pidge groaned  
  
"Yeah, you know him, he can be stubborn as a child ef he wants to" Hunk said with a small laugh, scratching his cheek slightly  
  
Keith blinked in surprise at that and hummed quietly in response, sure, he knew that Lance had been there with him when he got out of the healing pod- obviously, and he had looked tired, to say the least. But he hadn't thought that he'd been there with him the whole time. A pang of guilt settled inside him again.  
  
"Well, he's too considerate for his own good, for better or worse" Shiro shrugged with a fond smile  
  
That was something they all could agree on, even if Lance arguably wasn't the sharpest knife in the box, he was still very kind.  
  
"So, could anyone fill me in on what happened?" Keith asked after a little while  
  
"Of course, maybe we should get you something to eat while we talk? You've been in there for almost an entire day after all" Shiro said as he studied Keith with a concerned look as if he was still processing the fact that he was standing there, close to being fully recovered.  
  
"Sure" Keith simply replied with a wry smile, as he followed the trio out of the medical wing

* * *

 

 

Being in his own bed in his own room felt nice. After he had finished talking with Hunk, Pidge, and Shiro, they all parted ways and took off to different corners of the castle.  
  
Keith had immediately went to get a shower and a change of clothes since he was still walking around in his bloody apparel.  
It had been the first time that he properly saw the wound that ran in an almost clean diagonal from his right shoulder to his left hipbone, it had already closed up nicely in just one day, but he had the feeling that it was going to leave a prominent scar.  
  
Keith sighed and rolled onto his back, tucking his arms under his head as he stared up in the ceiling.  
His thoughts were overworking his brain, all the events of the last few days were slowly catching up to him. Even though some parts were still somewhat fuzzy (which quite honestly was understandable, since he'd been high on altean tea for almost an entire day, plus the fact that he survived getting pierced by some alien laser that rendered him useless for another day in a healing pod). Keith groaned quietly, thinking back on the week he'd experienced. All the events had his mind return to one person in particular: _Lance_.  
  
He blinked and let out another troubled sigh. Honestly, nothing made sense anymore when it came to him and Lance. After he and Shiro had spoken, he had felt like he had some kind of plan. And the way both him and Lance had acted after he'd emerged from the healing pod had given him fuel to his fire, he had felt somewhat confident then and there, but now? He had honestly no idea.  
  
Shiro had told him not to think too much about it and that things would work out, if he would just let them.  
But to just give in to his instincts and let things work themselves out just felt scary and impossible.  
He sighed heavily as he turned to lay on his other side, Shiro's words ringing in the back of his mind.  
  
_Definitely fucking weird._

* * *

 

As soon as Lance had left the medical wing, his confident act dropped. He walked to his room with heavy steps, practically dragging his feet behind him. All his pent up exhaustion washed over him instantly and it was hard to even keep his eyes up.  
  
Somehow, he managed to get to his room in one piece, not even bothering to turn the lights on as he walked straight to his bed- and he fell headlong onto it, hissing slightly at the impact.  
  
_'Right, should've changed out of the armor_ ' Lance thought to himself with a heavy sigh.  
  
After all, he had been in the medical wing the entire time since the attack, so he hadn't gotten around to change into his casual clothes and remained dressed in full paladin armor with the exception of the helmet that he had _/hopefully/_ left inside Blue.  
  
He groaned quietly and did a half-hearted attempt to kick his boots off, without success.  
  
Lance reluctantly pushed himself up into a sitting position, deciding that it was best to just get it over with so that he could rest comfortably.  
He made it quick and ungracefully yanked himself out of the armor and undersuit, leaving everything in a messy pile on the floor. Coran and Allura would probably kill him if they saw his unrespectful treatment of the equipment, but honestly, he couldn't care less right now.  
  
He grabbed a T-shirt that conveniently enough was within his reach and lazily pulled it over his head. If the intruder alarm would go off then he wanted to spend as little time as possible getting dressed.  
  
Lance stretched out his arms and let his upper body fall down flat against the mattress once more, sighing heavily as he closed his eyes and readied himself for sleep to claim him...  
**...**  
**...**  
  
The minutes ticked by, but nothing happened. No sleepiness, not even a small yawn.  
Lance furrowed his brows but refused to open his eyes and just turned over to lay on his side instead, pulling his long legs up towards his jaw.  
  
**...**  
**...**  
  
"Oh come oooon!" He groaned loudly and turned around again so that he was laying on his stomach, planting his face into his pillow.  
"I just wanna sleep, damnit..." he mumbled, his voice muffled by the pillow.  
  
He laid perfectly still like that for a couple of minutes, as if it would help his body to get the message, but to no avail.  
  
He slowly rolled over to his side once more, letting out a troubled sigh as he did so. He wanted nothing more than to just rest peacefully, but he just couldn't. It was as if his mind was working on overdrive with millions of thoughts passing each second- and at the same time, it was completely blank. It was frustrating, to say the least.  
Lance wordlessly brought his arms up to his pillow, grasping it tightly as he slowly moved it towards his chest, curling his body up against the soft cushion as if he was freezing to death and his pillow was the only source of heat.  
  
Lance felt very small and alone all of a sudden, his room just felt very big, hollow and scary.  
  
He hugged the pillow tightly to his chest and clenched his eyes shut, holding onto what little control he had leftover his thoughts and emotions.  
The feeling of loneliness clung onto him like toxic, destroying him from the inside out. He missed his family, he missed earth, his house, heck-even the garrison. He missed that stupid simulator, the cargo ship that he was assigned before he became a fighter pilot instead after Keith had dropped out- he missed Keith. Lance let out a shaky breath as he nudged his face against the pillow, rubbing off the tears that had fallen without him noticing. He missed just simply feeling safe and warm with his family in his own home. He was just a kid in the middle of an intergalactic war, in the middle of nowhere- in space.  
  
A quiet knock on his door ripped him out of his thoughts. The tap was so light that he almost thought that he had misheard, but nonetheless replied with a shaky _'yeah?_ '.  
Lance instantly shot up into sitting position as his door opened, quickly wiping his face with the sleeve of his shirt to get rid of any potential evidence that he'd been crying again.  
  
"Sorry to intrude like this..."  
Lance could recognize that voice anywhere, the one that lately had his heart beat with both excitement and uneasiness every time he heard it.  
  
The silhouette looming in his doorway, awkwardly shifting from one foot to another and fidgeting with the hem of his dark T-shirt was also unmistakenly familiar.  
  
"Keith" Lance said softly as he watched the dark figure emerge from his doorway

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soo, I'm actually quite happy with this chapter, think I managed to write the feels right.  
> The next chapter won't take as long, I hope. My foot's getting better so I've tried to focus on getting my house in order, it's a mess. Also, I attended a convention for the first time in 5 years last week, I had a blast! 
> 
> But that's just me rambling personal stuff, I should get to writing again, cya!

**Author's Note:**

> So I noticed when I read this through before posting that apparently night one and two are mirroring each other, the first one has Lance being anxious and Keith grabs him, and on night two it's the other way around.
> 
> I'm probably just overthinking things, but to clarify- that parallel was not intentional.
> 
>  
> 
> Whatever, it works. See ya'll next time~


End file.
